Bred-in-the-Bone
by FreyjaBee
Summary: Nothing is as he left it. His best friend kinda hates him, his guild is gone, Magnolia is still in tatters and there is a heartbeat under his skin he doesn't quite recognize. Desperate to put everything back into place, Natsu gathers Fairy Tail together again. There's only one problem: his biggest secret is about to tear him apart. If Gray doesn't do it first.
1. Chapter 1

**ATTENTION:**

Hi. I suggest reading my one-shot _**Guilty**_ before you continue. It is acting as a prologue. This _is_ an AU story with elements of the manga thrown in.

* * *

Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima.

 **Warnings:** Graphic depictions of violence, sexual encounters, coarse language, angst, near-rape in one chapter that I will give fair warning to, substance abuse, everything under the bloody sun, perhaps. Rated _**M**_ **.**

 **GENRE:** Will be a mix of **Romance, Drama, Mystery, Angst,** and a touch of **Horror. Crime,** too. Nearly everything.

 _ **Bred-In-The-Bone**_

* * *

The morning of the final day of the Grand Magical Games was muggy, full of smog and humidity that made Lucy's clothes stick to her body even after she showered. She dressed as thinly as possible, choosing a plain white tank and a pink skirt that was short enough that if her father were alive to see it he'd have a few more grey hairs.

First she said goodbye to Plue, picking him up and squishing him tight to her chest before dismissing him, then she grabbed a pair of black flip flops and shoved them on her feet. Her celestial keys found home on her hip, alongside her pen and notepad. Her apartment keys went on a thong around her neck. Dressed and mostly ready, she grabbed a croissant from a bag on the counter to eat along the way.

Outside under the blazing golden rays of sunlight, Crocus was indifferent to the heat, a riot of colour and voices as people rushed to the stadium to see the finale. Though it was too hot for it, Lucy hurried through the crowd, pushing past sweaty onlookers to get to Sorcerer Weekly's head reporter's side. Guards waved her through the stadium's entrance. She took the outer concrete stairs two at a time, stretching her legs as far as they would go. Sweat pricked on her brow. She swiped away impatiently and dodged around a woman with her baby, and beside her a man sneaking sips out of a flask. Lucy rolled her eyes, bemused. Drinking was allowed in the stadium, but it was way too expensive. Add to that it was barely nine in the morning.

On the top most level, she spotted Jason leaning against the banister, eyes glued to the arena. He barely flinched when she rushed in like a whirlwind and mimicked his stance like she'd been there the whole time.

"Hey, Jason."

"Did you get that down, Lucy?" he asked instead of saying hello. "They just announced the lineup for today's fight."

"Y—yes." Lying wasn't something she did easily, but this was something she could recover from. She fumbled out her notebook and deciphered the guilds' sigils on the large lacrima screens. There was no Fairy Tail this year. A weight settled in her chest. Being in this stadium all week had been near torture, but this last day was the hardest of all. Fairy Tail's victory had been a night to remember. Would she open her mouth to make a complaint, though? Not her, not Lucy Heartfilia, even though she was near-drowning in memories. All she could see was Natsu when she looked around. Was he okay? She hadn't been able to find any sign of him throughout the whole year. Did he forget about her? Was he ever coming back? Did he miss her?

Lucy shook her head violently to shake clear her thoughts. Way down below the fight had started and she hadn't written a single word. Biting her pen into paper, she started scribbling down details just like Jason taught her.

Only moments later the final member of Dullanhead fell heavily to the ground. Skull Millione had won, as Lucy had predicted. Tucking her notebook back into her pocket, she made a face, screwing her lips to the left. "That was uneventful."

"Are you kidding me? It was so _cool_ ," Jason gushed.

Lucy decided that he was easily bought. "Yeah. Listen, I better get back to my apartment if you want me to type all this stuff up for next week's issue. You don't need anything else, do you?"

Jason smiled brightly. "Hiring you on as a reporter was one of the best decisions I've ever made, Lucy. You've really grown into the position. I'll see you tomorrow for the Grand Magical Games celebration party, right?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world!" Smiling, Lucy turned to leave, but paused, hands pressed together as if in prayer, paralyzed by the hush that overcame the stadium.

A voice rose and fell throughout the arena. "I challenge the winning guild!"

Lucy's heart knotted in her throat.

"Who is that?" Jason asked sharply. Lucy could barely stand to turn around, afraid she was imagining things, but she couldn't _not,_ either. She summoned her courage but moved like a rusty tinman. Way down below, beyond the sea of heads, a cloaked figure stood in the middle of the arena, facing the remainder of Skull Millone.

"Stand up and fight me," said a cloaked figure. The voice was gravelly, harsh, different than the last time Lucy had heard it, but _familiar._ Her chest tightened. As if in confirmation of her discovery, the figure smashed his two fists together, igniting a brilliant flame that sparked hot and engulfed his body. The heat expanded, encompassing first the lower floors of the stadium, and then grew higher and higher, hotter and hotter, until Lucy felt it all the way on the top floor. The sun had nothing on Natsu Dragneel.

His cowl fell back, revealing rose coloured hair that was too long and pinker than Lucy remembered. Looking at him so far away, her world boiled down to one simple fact: Natsu had come back.

"Lucy!" a small voice called. Lucy whipped around and lifted her gaze. Happy soared on pale wings, swirling around and around overhead, gradually coiling down to land gently on the wall before her.

Lucy made her mouth work. "Happy... you're back." She expected to sound more excited, but she barely dared to believe it was true.

"Aye," the cat said. "We looked for you at your old apartment, but there was some old guy living there... and Fairy Tail… the guild hall was still destroyed. We couldn't find where Master put the new one, so Natsu decided to come to the Grand Magical Games, thinking everyone would be here."

Lucy didn't have the heart to tell him that there _was_ no guild anymore. Clutching her hand to her chest she turned back to see Natsu's flames explode in a way they had never before, burning with an intensity that was difficult to fathom. _Everything_ was melting, the sand under his feet out there, the stadium, her goddamn _clothes_. The fire burned hotter still. People began yelling, rising from their seats and clearing the area when the heat became too much. Skull Millione was long gone.

"Let's get out of here, Lucy!" Jason called from steps away. He didn't wait to hear her response, moving as fast as his feet would take him. Lucy took a step back from the melting concrete, worried about her skin and her hair and her eyebrows.

"Hey, Natsu!" Happy yelled above the din. "I found Lucy!"

Natsu's head snapped up, his flames dying around him as his eyes locked with Lucy's across the stadium. "Lucy?" Though he was far away, Lucy saw his lips move around her name. Her heart fluttered with something strange.

"She's right here!" Happy pointed like Natsu was blind. "Come on, Lucy, let's go say hi." He leapt into the air and grabbed her under the arms without waiting for permission. She was airborne before she could draw breath. She squealed in protest and wrapped her arms around her chest to keep her clothing just where it should be. It was a losing battle.

"You've gotten heavier!" Happy cried with effort.

"Shut _up,_ Happy, and put me down!" Lucy squabbled. She didn't dare thrash about, for fear of Happy dropping her, or her shirt giving up the ghost. Wouldn't that be embarrassing in front of the man she hadn't seen for a year?

Happy ignored her and flew over the stadium seats with an ease that belied his earlier complaint. Lucy's stomach protested with nervous energy. She had dreamed of seeing Natsu, but now that the moment was here, she didn't know what to say. How do you bridge a year-long gap? With idle chatter? With all the things she wanted to say before he left but didn't? Her night with Gray came back to haunt her. Shame made her blush.

Happy dropped her lightly on the ground mere steps from Natsu. The dragon slayer looked at her with an odd expression on his face.

Nervously, Lucy tucked her bangs behind her ear. "Natsu..." she began.

The strangeness fled his eyes. "Yo, it's been awhile, hasn't it, Lucy?"

She stumbled on words, flabbergasted. "You disappear and come back after so long, and _that's_ what you have to say to me?"

Natsu smiled impishly and closed the distance between them in two sure strides. Lucy clutched tightly to the tattered remains of her shirt, afraid to move an inch, and allowed him to embrace her. He smelled like warm summer days and hot sand. He smelled like home.

The reunion was short lived when the stadium filled with the King's guard.

* * *

Half an hour later, Lucy, wearing a new shirt, a light blue tank, waited impatiently outside the throne room. Her hands were clenched tightly, and her mind was snagged on one particular idea: she really, really hoped that the King forgave him for burning down the entire stadium because she couldn't even imagine letting him go a second time. It would break her.

As if on que, the two guards manning the doors pulled them wide, allowing Natsu to swagger through, a free man, his mischievous smile intact. Happy skipped along at his side. "Ready to get going, Luce?"

"They let you go?"

"Yep. As a thanks for saving Crocus last time." He winked. "Come on, let's get out of here."

Lucy hesitated, biting her lip hard so it wouldn't quiver. "If you're planning on leaving again just go ahead and do it right now."

"Lucy, what are you—"

A chasm of hurt opened in her chest and all kinds of emotions—too many for her to name—came rushing forth. His note, the page it was written on crumpled, the words smeared from the hours and hours she'd spent looking at it. "You know what I'm saying," she rushed on, afraid of losing momentum. "You left me. You just up and left, without a second thought as to what that would mean, as to what that would do. I've been all alone all this time, and then I couldn't find you. I thought you were dead, Natsu. _Dead._ And then you just show up and challenge the strongest guild in Fiore like it's no big deal. You walk into my life again like it's no big deal! Well, it's a big deal to me!" Lucy paused, her cheeks flaming with an embarrassed flush. She hadn't meant to say all of those things, but they were true, every last one of them.

"Uh oh," Happy muttered from steps away.

Natsu, face flaming, shot a look over his shoulder to where the guards were watching them curiously. Embarrassed, he turned his back to them again and took Lucy by the shoulders, guiding her towards the exit. "Let's… find somewhere more private." He thought maybe she'd pull away, but she didn't, her feet clopped along in tandem with his. Happy raced ahead to push open the doors. The sun was still blazing hot, welcoming them into the castle gardens.

Lucy waited until they'd found a bench near a hedgerow before she finally found the courage to pull out of his grasp. Natsu didn't look at her while he threw himself down onto its wooden surface and scrubbed his face. Happy clambered up beside him, sitting exactly like a person might.

"You're right," Natsu said finally. "I shouldn't have left you, Lucy. It wasn't fair, but it was something that I had to do. After Igneel... I just needed to get my head straight."

 _Igneel._ Lucy worried on her lip. "I could have been there for you."

Natsu clenched his fist tightly. "Lucy I—" He paused, seemingly at a loss as to how to continue.

Lucy sighed. "Come on, I'll show you my new apartment, then we can get some dinner. My treat." She forced a smile.

Natsu lifted his gaze. "Yeah?" It was a word spoken tentatively. It was then Lucy realized he'd been nervous about this meeting.

"Yeah." Reaching out she grabbed the dragon slayer's hand and pulled him up. His skin was rough and callused, exactly as she'd remembered it. Her fingers lingered on his a touch too long, but gods, it was tough to let him go.

A toothy smile came to his mouth. "Man, I'm starving!"

"Aye, sir!" Happy yipped from the bench.

"Have you heard from anyone else?" Natsu asked; his hand still nestled in Lucy's. "We checked the guild—how come Master didn't rebuild it where it was?"

"Natsu…" She didn't know how to say it delicately. "Master disbanded Fairy Tail."

It took several long seconds for Lucy's words to percolate through, but when they did, Natsu's chest seized. "What?"

"It's gone," she clarified. "Everyone went their own separate ways."

"No," he disagreed. "That can't be—"

"Yes. The reason why my apartment was occupied by someone else is because I moved. I _had_ to. I had to work," she said, as if she needed to justify her actions.

"Why—" _Didn't you make everyone stay?_ Natsu let the question fall short, knowing the blonde wouldn't appreciate it. He sighed. "Really?"

"Yeah."

"Fuck."

"Yeah," Lucy agreed.

Natsu's dark orbs found hers. "Do you know where everyone else is?"

Lucy was too aware of Natsu's hand still in hers. The contact seemed intentionally intimate. She didn't let go, unable to just yet. "I've been keeping tabs on them every so often... it helps that I'm a reporter now, but I haven't seen any of them since they left."

"Well, we can't just leave Fairy Tail disbanded, that's my family. We'll have to get everyone back together again," Natsu said with a resolve that Lucy couldn't mirror.

"Natsu..." she began, unsure of how to say the things that were bothering her. She tried again. "Natsu, if they wanted to come back, don't you think they would have? I think everyone's following their own path, now. I don't know if they need Fairy Tail anymore."

Natsu brought his brow down incredulously. "Of course they want to come home, we're family. Everyone needs a family."

"Yeah, but—"

He continued, ignoring her. "This is all that old man's fault. Once I find Gramps, I'm going to kick his ass."

"I'm sure he had his reasons."

"Dumb ones," Natsu muttered.

Lucy sighed. "Come on, let's get going."

* * *

Moving through Crocus was still a nightmare, the streets choked with people. Lucy, used to the bustle of everyday life here now, navigated with an ease that surprised the dragon slayer and his feline companion.

Coming up on a tall brick building stained black from factory smoke, Lucy announced, "This is it!" From her pocket she produced a silver key. "You can stay here until you decide what you're going to do, I guess. The couch is always open." She opened the door. Beyond was a modest apartment: A long purple couch, a scratched and stained coffee table, a refrigerator that grumbled and groaned in the excessive summer heat, and an overflowing bookshelf.

Happy came in first, leaving Natsu lagging behind. "Won't your boyfriend be mad?"

Lucy rolled her eyes and said, "Help yourself to the fridge, but try not to clean me out. Everything is more expensive in the city."

"Ohhh! Lucy, do you have any fish?" the cat crooned, salivating.

Lucy pulled her brow down in a scowl. "Do I look like a bloody cat?" she said hotly. "If you want fish you'll have to go get it yourself."

"Awe, don't be mean to the little guy, Luce. He's just happy to see you, right Happy?" Natsu asked, coming in finally and closing the door behind himself.

"More like hungry to see her," Happy countered. "I'll stock up if there's a river nearby."

"On the east side of town," Lucy said. She checked her watch. "I have to transfer over some notes, so you'll have some time if you want to go now."

"Awesome. Coming, Natsu?"

Natsu looked at the bathroom longingly. "Maybe next time, little buddy. I need a shower, too." He picked at his clothes for emphasis.

"OOOH, you just want some alone time," Happy crowed, moving towards the window. "I get it."

When Natsu got red but didn't contradict him Lucy's heart fluttered. The dragon slayer asked, "Can you grab me some clothes while your out?"

"What do I look like, your cat servant?" Happy asked.

Natsu gave him a reproachful look. "Come on, Happy, please? Don't make me go out like this." His clothes were badly sewn together. " _Please_." What the hell else were best friends for?

"Fine," Happy grumbled.

"Thanks, buddy." Natsu dug through his tattered pants for a few bills and shoved them at the cat. "Nothing fancy, just some pants and a shirt."

"And new shorts, too," Happy said decidedly. "No girls are going to want to see you in the ones you're wearing."

Natsu opened his mouth to protest but the cat was already magicking his wings into existence and taking to the air. The silence that followed in his wake was deafening. Natsu blew out a breath.

"Well, he hasn't changed," Lucy said to lighten the mood.

"And neither have you," Natsu said. "I missed you, Lucy."

A blush crept up her neck. "I missed you guys, too."

Natsu nodded once, sharply, as if he'd had enough of intimacy. "If you don't mind, I'm going to go clean up."

"Yeah. There's a clean towel in there," Lucy offered.

He smiled softly and found the washroom.

* * *

Happy returned just as Natsu got out of the bathroom, shirtless and beaded with water. He was much broader than before, and he had a few new scars. Lucy's fingers itched to touch them. She clenched them tightly together instead of obeying that random want, eternally grateful that he couldn't read her mind.

"Here, Natsu." Happy dropped a grey bag at his feet. Natsu rummaged through it, coming out with a plain green T-shirt and a black pair of jeans. "Thanks, little buddy."

"You owe me," Happy said as he padded over to the couch and clambered up. From the bag on his back he produced a silvery fish joyfully and began eating it.

Lucy watched with despair as scales and pieces of bone dropped on the cushions. "What are you, a savage?"

"I'm a cat."

"A cat that's about to ruin his dinner," Lucy muttered.

"Nope, Happy's always hungry," Natsu said.

Lucy glanced at him and saw that he was just yanking his pants on beneath the towel. Her cheeks got hot. She found somewhere else to look. "Geeze."

"Wow, Natsu. Lucy's boyfriend is going to beat you up for stuff like that," Happy said gleefully. "You can't just take your clothes off."

"I'm putting them _on,"_ Natsu clarified.

"Gods. You two really have been off the map, haven't you?" Lucy said, staring out her open window. It was unlikely anyone would be able to see Natsu from up here, but _still_. Did he not have any shame? "Some creep is going to see you, Natsu. And take pictures."

"Oh, do you have a camera now, Lucy?" Happy teased.

" _Alright_ ," Lucy fumed, turning around. "Enough, you perverted little feline." From the corner of her eye she saw that thankfully Natsu was dressed.

Happy grinned from the couch. "You're too easy, Lucy. I have to tease you."

"Let's just go," Lucy said.

"I'm _starving_ ," Natsu crooned, rubbing his stomach. Lucy almost groaned. The last time Natsu had that look in his eye when she offered to buy him dinner, he almost bankrupted her.

"Don't eat too much. I don't make as much as a reporter as I did as a mage."

"Yeah, yeah," Natsu said, practically running for the doors, Happy hot on his heels. Lucy came slower, taking a moment to cherish her good fortune and find her keys.

* * *

The city was _still_ hotter than hell, and _still_ in a hum about the Grand Magical Games. Every so often, someone would say, "Did you hear? Salamander is back! I wonder if Fairy Tail is going to come back, too, now?"

Natsu smiled toothily and nudged Lucy when he heard those people, but the blonde still wasn't convinced.

The restaurant she had chosen was cluttered with people, but there was a small table near the back. They had to wait a few minutes for their waitress to appear. Natsu took that time to tell Lucy of all the adventures he and Happy had while he was away. He talked animatedly, using his hands and his fire to accentuate his stories. Lucy laughed, each pealing sound ringing with a note of bitterness and sadness that the dragon slayer noted but didn't know how to fix.

Their food arrived. Natsu spoke around mouthfuls, with Happy chiming in every so often, adding depth to the stories. Lucy listened intently as she ate, the feeling in her heart bitter-sweet.

"Now that I'm back, we can start doing jobs together again," Natsu explained as he gathered his final bite onto his fork, even though half of his meal was eaten with his hands.

At first Lucy smiled, imagining that. Then she sobered, reality coming up on her. "I have a job here, Natsu."

Natsu couldn't be dimmed. "So? Just tell Sorcerer Weekly that you're done. Jason will understand."

Lucy bit her lip and held back her retort. She wasn't sure if she _wanted_ to stop being a journalist. She finally had an opportunity to write and have people read her words. Could she give that up? To avoid answering, she flagged down their waitress.

"The bill, please," she said when the girl shuffled over.

"Right away, Miss." The woman took out a notepad and scribbled some numbers on it. Her presence helped dispel some awkwardness. "Here you go."

It was just as expensive as Lucy anticipated. She dug through her pockets for some money, resigned.

"Thank you, come again!" the woman chirruped.

"I can't afford to anymore," Lucy complained.

"We'll pay you back, right, little buddy?" Natsu prodded Happy.

"No you won't," Lucy said. "Let's be realistic."

"One day," Natsu told her.

Nope, not likely.

* * *

The sun had finally set, but it was only slightly cooler. Lucy still sweated. Natsu, of course, looked to be right in his element. The heat never bothered him. The blonde filed that away as another reason to hate him as she opened her stuffy apartment. Both Natsu and Happy rushed by her in a race to get to the couch. Happy made it first, stretching out and popping out his belly. Natsu kicked off a pair of well-worn boots, then flopped down beside him, nearly launching him off.

"Hey!" the cat complained.

"I'm beat!" Natsu exclaimed as he stretched. He looked at Lucy through a lock of pink hair. "Thanks for dinner." He almost sounded shy.

"Thank you, Lucy!" Happy mimicked, extracting his tail from under Natsu's ass.

Lucy closed the door and locked it, then went to her linen closet. "I had a good time. It was good to see you two again." She returned with blankets. Natsu and Happy had worked out an agreement, it seemed, one that ended with the cat sleeping by the dragon slayer's feet.

"It's a good thing you showered, Natsu," Happy said.

Natsu grunted, his eyes already closed. Lucy threw the blankets at him. He caught them adeptly with his face.

"Thanks, Lucy," he said in a muffled voice.

"You're welcome. Stay out of my room," Lucy told them.

Happy picked up his head. "What's in there?"

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Deviant things you shouldn't be looking at."

Happy's eyes got wide. "Really?" Even Natsu pulled the blankets back to look at her.

"What do you think?" Lucy asked blandly.

"I'd believe it," Happy said.

"And I'd let you," Lucy replied. "Now stay out." Turning, she left them to their own devices, first going to the washroom to wash her face and brush her teeth, then returning to her bedroom to change, leaving the door open a crack in case they needed anything. From her pajama drawer she chose a pale pink nighty and yanked it over her head, then fell into bed. Her mattress was soft and comfortable beneath her body.

Sleep came faster than she thought possible.

* * *

Natsu lay awake for a long time, listening to Lucy's soft breathing. Happy had fallen asleep nearly as soon as his head touched the pillow, but not the dragon slayer. He was edgy. This was not the reunion he had imagined. In his mind, whenever he returned, Mira would be at the bar of the new Fairy Tail, Lisanna at her side, smiling. Lucy, Gray and Erza would be sitting at a table talking animatedly, laughing and planning their next job. They should have been there, happy to see him when he came back, not spread across the continent walking their own paths, or writing goddamn articles for a man that couldn't string a sentence together. He clenched his fist tightly, thinking of his guarded friend. The shadow behind Lucy's eyes hadn't escaped his attention, nor did the way she avoided his invitation to work with him again.

For the hundredth time he wondered if he shouldn't have asked her to come along. He looked towards her room, heart heavy. It had been hard to leave her behind. He didn't imagine it would be hard to come back to her, too.

Before he knew what he was doing his feet were beneath him. Down at the other end of the couch, Happy didn't stir, totally exhausted from all of their travelling. Quietly he tiptoed to her room and pushed the door open. It was dark inside, but he could see her sprawled out on her bed, blankets pushed down over her plump breasts. He tried not to stare.

"Lucy?"

"Mm," she muttered.

"Hey." Natsu closed the door mostly and came all the way into the room to her bed. It smelled different than he remembered. She'd changed her shampoo in the last year. It sort of made him sad, but on the other hand he liked the new citric smell. He sat, the mattress sagging and groaning, and touched her hand. The skin was smooth and soft. She sighed on contact, the sound gentle. Encouraged, Natsu whispered, "Can we talk?"

Lucy mumbled, "It's late."

"Yeah, but—"

Lucy said, "In the morning, okay?"

Feeling defeated, Natsu let the silence stretch. Lucy relaxed again, her breathing evened. The dragon slayer looked towards the door, both knowing what he should do and what he was going to. Her pillows were soft under his head, new, if he had to guess, while her blankets were older, well loved and well used. He closed his eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

Lucy awoke wrapped in a weight of comfort. She opened her eyes blurrily. The sun had risen and was shining rays of golden light into her room. She stayed that way for a moment before her world settled into clarity around her. It wasn't her blankets that held her so tightly. Her breath caught as she came to realize exactly what was happening. A thick arm wrapped itself securely around her middle, pinning her to the bed. The events of the previous day came crashing down around her. Natsu was in her home. No. Natsu was in her _bed_.

When she tried to escape the circle of his arms, Natsu simply pulled her in closer and nuzzled his head deeper into her pillows. With his body pressed against hers, Lucy could feel _everything._ "Ugh, _Natsu."_ Nothing had changed, not really. Except maybe before he used to have less morning wood poking into her thigh. _Seriously?_ "Damnit, you pervert. Hey. Let go." She pinched the soft part of his arm, the sensitive skin right under the swell of his bicep. _That_ got his attention.

His head came up, his eyes came open, and his mouth fell into a displeased O of pain. "Ow, fuck—"

"Don't even _think_ about complaining," Lucy warned. The anger helped keep the hurt at bay. She didn't _want_ to fall into their old routine. She didn't _want_ him climbing into her bed and snuggling up like they were so much more. She didn't _want_ to like it. It had been a year without a word from him. A lot of shit changed in that time. "Get up and get out."

"Lucy, wait." Natsu sat up straighter, the blankets falling down around his chest. He was bare—hopefully just from the waist up. He was still close enough that Lucy could feel him pressing into her. Did he have no shame? Her whole body flushed. She inched back just a bit, trying not to be too obvious. Natsu noticed and faltered. "Um—"

"Just get out. I told you guys not to come in here," Lucy said.

"Yeah, but I wanted to talk."

"And I told you _in the morning_."

"It's morning now. Come on, I want to talk to you about what happened last year."

Her heart squeezed with that old familiar pain. She scowled. "I am _not_ having a conversation with you right now. Get _out."_

Natsu chewed his cheek and looked away. "Just give me a few minutes." Not to spend explaining, but calming down would be nice. It was hard with Lucy so near, he felt wound tighter than a spring. Had it always been that way? Now her scowl cut into him, that meanness in her eye both compelling and saddening.

"Wow, that was fast Natsu," came a chiding voice.

Lucy found Happy staring unabashedly into her room. She flopped back on her pillows, pressing her palms into her eyes. "This is _not_ happening."

Happy was merciless. "You don't have to be shy, Lucy, I know all about the birds and the bees."

She peeled her hand back to glower at the cat. There was something scathing on her tongue, but Natsu grabbed her attention. He was staring openly at her tracking wall, taking in all of the pictures and maps and names tagged at different locations.

"What's all this?"

"Mind your own business," Lucy said defensively, feeling her neck heat with embarrassment. How pathetic.

"Is this... is this everyone's location?" Natsu asked. It was one thing to know that the guild had disbanded and another to see physical proof that everyone had moved on. And another to know that Lucy had been looking out for them, even as they went on their way. His heart suddenly hurt. "Why didn't you join them, Lucy? Erza or Gray or something?"

Lucy winced. "It just… it didn't feel right. Erza went chasing after Jellal, and Gray… he and Juvia took off…"

Natsu took his eyes off the wall to meet her gaze. There was an intensity to him that was just slightly terrifying. "We'll bring everyone back together again," he promised.

"They don't want to come back," she said after a moment.

"Of course they do. I told you yesterday, Fairy Tail is their home. It's their family," the dragon slayer insisted.

Lucy shook her head. "Natsu, even if that were true, they're scattered across the continent."

"We'll leave them a message they won't be able to ignore," the dragon slayer promised heatedly. He pushed the blankets back and stood.

"Where are you going?" _Leaving again._ Lucy pushed down the thought.

Natsu said, "I'll be back. Come on, Happy."

"Aye!" the cat crowed, glad to be included.

Natsu crossed the room quickly, exiting into the living room to gather up his clothes. Lucy watched him yank his new shirt over his head and hop into his jeans. His boots came next. He didn't even bother with socks. Unsurprising.

"Don't go anywhere!" Natsu chirped, pointing a firm finger at Lucy. There was another petty and snide comment on her tongue that went something like, _'That's your MO_ ," but she held it back. A second later she wished she didn't when Natsu went for her living room window and pushed it wide. "Come on, Happy."

The cat hurried across the room, wings coming into existence, and leapt out after his friend. Lucy didn't check to see if he caught Natsu or not. The fall to the ground wasn't that far anyway.

* * *

Lucy, breakfasted and showered, had just finished dressing when her window opened wide. She squealed, she couldn't help it. It had been a long time since someone barged in through her window. She relaxed slightly when she saw it was Natsu clambering over the sill, Happy at his side.

"Hey," the dragon slayer said breathily. His cheeks were pink with exertion.

"There's a door, you know?" Lucy asked.

"No time." He jogged past her into the living room and grabbed his pack. He came back, moving faster than before. "Come on. Hurry."

Lucy's brows knitted together. She remained firmly in place. "What's going on?"

A mischievous smile befell Natsu. "No time to explain. Come on, Lucy."

"I have to go to work," she said as firmly as possible. "I promised Jason I'd write up on the match and—"

"I told him you quit."

She blinked while his words sank in. then she fell back on denial. "No, you didn't."

"He sure did," Happy spoke up.

The anger came in a hot wash. "You asshole, what were you thinking? Damnit." Lucy hurried to her closet and grabbed a pair of strappy sandals from inside. She better look cute if she was going to beg Jason for forgiveness.

Natsu looked over his shoulder to the grounds below. "You can be mad at me later, Lucy, but we _really_ need to get moving."

"I'm not going _anywhere_ with you," she said hotly. Tears pressed at her lids. "I worked _hard_ for what I have here, Natsu. It wasn't easy starting again you know? I had _nothing_. No friends, no money, no job. I made a place for myself here in Crocus. You can't just swoop in and mess everything up."

Natsu winced. "Lucy—"

"No."

"Natsu, they're coming," Happy said.

Lucy swiped at her eyes. " _Who_ is coming?"

"The military," Natsu explained in a rush. He actually looked a little worried.

"Why the hell would the military be coming?"

"Natsu did something naughty," Happy said with a gleeful laugh.

"Right. And they're on their way now. If you don't hurry they're going to arrest you, Lucy, to bring you in for questioning." Natsu was right in thinking that would get her attention.

"Arrest me?"

"As an accomplice."

"I hate you." the words came so effortlessly.

"Hate me on the road. Come on." He grabbed her hand and started pulling her towards the window.

"Natsu, my apartment—my clothes—my _job_." More tears were coming. She dug her heels in to the carpet; it was a losing battle, Natsu was stronger than he'd been before.

"Lucy—"

"I'm _not_ going so you can just leave me again!" she erupted.

Natsu paused at the window and turned back to face her. His mouth was in an uncharacteristically serious line. "I won't leave you again. I promise."

Lucy felt her resolve withering; Natsu recognized it too. Stooping, he slipped through the window then reached back for her hand. Lucy's grip was loose in his, but she didn't pull away. She hated herself for that, too. And for that first step she took, lifting her leg over the window sill.

Natsu looked down the street to where a platoon of armed men was rushing through. "Take her, Happy."

"Aye." The cat levitated and grabbed Lucy under the arms. She was airborne in seconds, less time than it took her to wonder what she was doing. Less time than it took her to wonder if she was making a mistake.

From on high Lucy watched Natsu drop two stories to the ground. He landed gracefully, more like a cat than a man, and took off at a run in the same direction as Happy flew, using alleys and shadows to mask his movements. In seconds he was gone from Lucy's sight. The men in the streets raised their voices.

"There they are! Stop them!"

An arrow of all things soared inches from Lucy's shoulder. She cried out, surprised.

"Don't shoot, idiot, you'll hit a civilian," one of the guards scolded. Happy soared higher and Lucy missed the responding remark.

"They tried to kill us," Lucy said numbly.

"Well, they tried to shoot us down, anyway," Happy replied.

"What the _hell_ did that idiot do?"

Happy flew higher still, soaring well above Crocus, and turned so Lucy could see the side of the castle where ' _Fairy Tail'_ blazed down the side brightly.

"Don't worry," Happy assured. "The letters will burn themselves out. _But,_ the newspapers will be writing about it. News will travel fast. Natsu's kinda smart when he wants to be, huh?"

"You're crazy," she affirmed in a voice that was just a whisper.

"He really did miss you, Lucy," Happy said, turning back around and flying faster.

Lucy didn't know what to say so she said nothing at all.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, flying over the train station at the edge of the city, Happy started his descent, aiming for a little used building at the corner of the property. He landed a little ungracefully, dropping Lucy to the ground and then panting, exhausted.

Lucy looked at him with knitted brows. "This is the worst harebrained idea you two idiots could have come up with. What the hell is the endgame?"

Happy shrugged.

"Where the _hell_ is Natsu?" Lucy demanded, frustrated. Maybe he got caught. She didn't know whether to feel relieved or not. Maybe she could plead ignorance to this whole thing and the king would forgive her. Or maybe she'd say the hell with it and break the idiot out of jail using her spirits.

 _Don't be rash._

"Hey, guys," came Natsu's rasping voice. Lucy turned on her heel and found him in the shade. His cheeks and neck were red from exertion, damp with sweat, his chest rising and falling quickly. In his hand he held three tickets. "Come on, we gotta train to catch."

"I suppose it's too late to turn back now?" Lucy asked.

Natsu grinned. "I guess you could, but who'd want to?"

Anyone sane, maybe.

* * *

The train chugged along at a quick pace. Jammed into a compartment that was too small, Lucy clasped a vomit bag _just in case._ In all the times she'd ridden with Natsu in a moving vehicle, it had only ever been ships that made him truly sick, but one could never be too prepared, especially when one only had one change of clothes.

Natsu groaned in pressed his face against the window, closing his eyes.

"Why don't you try to sleep, Natsu?" Happy asked.

"Are you kidding me?" He groaned again, face paler than talc, brow damp with sweat.

When Lucy felt a small sprig of pity she decided that it was time to get the hell up. "I need to stretch my legs. Here." She handed the bag to Happy. "I'll be back."

"We'll be here," Natsu grumbled and breathed deeply through his nose. Lucy hoped he could keep it together. They still had at least another fifteen minutes until they reached Magnolia. Turning away she opened the compartment door. The corridor beyond was occupied by a man in a uniform. He was walking up, rapping on compartments. There was a piece of paper in his hand. It looked like a telegraph to the blonde. One with a picture on it.

A bad feeling in her chest made her stay just where she was.

"Afternoon, Miss," the man said when the compartment one down from hers opened. "I'd like to see your tickets, please."

"Certainly," the woman inside said. The man took the ticket stub she offered, looked it over, then said, "Thank you. And, this picture was just wired to us directly from Crocus. Have you seen this man?"

Lucy's heart leapt into her throat. She strained to see the picture, standing on tiptoe and peering as inconspicuously as she could. Sure enough, she saw a flash of bright pink. It was Natsu in that photo, she was sure of it.

Heart crashing, she turned and opened her compartment. "Tickets," she told Natsu and Happy.

Natsu lifted his head dopily. "Huh?"

"Tickets, you big idiot, and make it fast." Lucy held out her hand. Neither cat nor man questioned her, just handed over their stubs. Lucy took them and eased back out into the hall just as the guard arrived at their compartment.

"Good afternoon, Miss." He was tall with a sharp jaw, lively blue eyes, and a five o'clock shadow. _At least he's handsome,_ Lucy thought a little meanly. She smiled her widest, brightest smile.

"Hello, Sir."

"Just doing a ticket check."

"Of course." She held out the three. "Here you go."

He looked around her. "Can you open the compartment, please?"

Lucy sweated. "Actually, my friend is _really_ motion sick. She would prefer not to be bothered." Oh, Natsu was going to hate her for that, but she'd rather the guard didn't think she was travelling with two boys.

"Does she?"

"Yes. She'd really hate me if I let you see her like this. She doesn't even want me in there, that's why I'm out here." She smiled again. "You must see a lot of that."

He shrugged. "I guess. I really should take a look inside, though. Protocol."

"Can't you just make an exception this one time?" Lucy begged, really laying it on thick. Her lashes had never batted so much in her life. "I would really, really appreciate it."

"I'm actually looking for an outlaw," the man explained. "He defiled the king's castle. They suspect he's on this train, so I really should…"

"How _terrible_ ," Lucy said when she could. "It's a good thing we have men like you looking out for us all here in Fiore." She touched his arm for good measure, really hamming it up. "You're so brave."

The man stammered. "Well yes, I suppose."

"Uniforms are made for men like you." She would have blushed if she weren't so nervous. Like, seriously? There was no way he was going to buy—

"You prefer to enjoy your men in uniforms?" Apparently Guard Handsome wasn't as shy as she was.

"Whenever I can," she said with a grin. The very tips of her ears were hot.

The door down the hall slid open and another guard poked his head through. "Got anything, Ackles?"

Ackles looked to Lucy, torn, then handed back her tickets. "All clear in here."

"Next one then." The man disappeared again.

"I'll be in Magnolia for a few days," Ackles said. "Come find me. I'll be staying at the guard barracks near the Thorn and Thistle." He named a moderately skeevey bar.

"I'll be sure to." She squeezed his arm once more for good measure, then released him so he could walk away, wide shoulders swaying. Only when the train door closed at his back did Lucy relax enough to go back inside their compartment.

Both Happy and Natsu were alert and watching her.

" _She_?" Natsu asked, predictably.

"I didn't want him knowing I was travelling with a guy," Lucy said defensively.

"Well—"

"Natsu's just mad because you made a date with him," Happy snickered.

Natsu looked too sick to really defend himself. "Are they looking for us?"

"Yeah, but thanks to me and my excellent acting skills, you two idiots weren't found out," Lucy said superiorly.

Natsu relaxed some just as a voice came over the loud speaker. "Arriving in Magnolia. Magnolia Station."

"Let's get the hell off this deathtrap," the dragon slayer said, holding onto the windowsill tightly and praying to any god that would listen while the train ground to a halt.

"We should be careful," Lucy said. "Cover your hair, Natsu."

"With what?" he asked.

"Your scarf or something, I don't know," Lucy said.

Natsu grumbled but did as she suggested, covering and tying most of his hair back. Lucy fixed it around his ears, ignoring his closeness, then stood. "Come on. And don't walk so close to me. I don't want that guard thinking I'm a liar."

"Even if you are?" Happy asked.

"Not the point," Lucy replied. She faced away from them, feeling lost without anything to carry. She had nothing, no clothes, no money, and no bathing essentials. She was going to have to start from scratch. "You're going to help me replace every single thing I left behind."

Natsu grinned sheepishly at her back. "Guess that means you're staying with us."

"Didn't really give me much of a choice, did you?" Lucy wondered.

"I'll get you everything you need, Luce. We just gotta make some money first."

Yeah. No biggy. "I don't even have any cash for food." And she was so hungry her stomach was cramping.

"We can go fishing, right, Happy?" Natsu asked. There was a desperateness to his voice that let Lucy know he was scrambling to make things right. Some of her anger eased.

"Oh, so now you want to come," the cat said a little dejectedly.

"Just make sure it's not Wing Fish, okay?" Lucy said after a beat. "Meet me by the clock tower on the platform, and don't talk to anyone." Without waiting for a reply she grabbed the door and merged seamlessly into the shuffling crowd. Natsu waited a moment then followed, already tired of hiding. Happy trod at his side, narrowly avoiding getting his tail stomped on by careless steppers.

The dragon slayer lost sight of Lucy quickly, her figure getting eaten up by the crowd. It wasn't a dynamic that he liked. "You think I should write a letter and apologize to the king?"

"Yeah, maybe, if you think it'll help," Happy said.

It was definitely better than hiding and sneaking around, wasn't it?

The doors came into sight. Beyond them, the setting sun lit Magnolia in a golden blaze. The train station was packed with people filing off. Natsu kept his head down, gaze trained to the ground as he passed the man Lucy agreed to go out with. The blonde was there, speaking with him again. She barely glanced his way. Natsu moved past her. When no one stopped him the tension in his heart eased.

"You don't think she was serious, do you?" he asked Happy when they were clear.

"About going out with that guy?"

"Yeah."

"You heard her. ' _Men in uniforms_.'" The cat's impression was terrible.

Natsu made a face, bowling his way to the clock tower. "She's just prickly. She'll calm down." He hoped that his best friend would agree with him, but Happy said nothing.


	3. Chapter 3

It was only moments until Lucy came around the side of the clock tower, flushed and bright eyed, but to Natsu it felt like years.

"Ready?" the blonde asked, a buoyancy to her voice that the dragon slayer both envied and hated, mainly because it wasn't he that put it there.

There was a cutting remark on Natsu's tongue that went something like, _'What, you don't want to stay and hang out with your new friend?'_ He severed that right quick. "Let's get out of here." He eagerly took the first step, leading the way through Magnolia's still rubble-filled streets, always used to being in front, to having the control. It was a short and feeble reprieve, one he grasped at and held on to furiously, not much liking the wild swing his life had taken lately. First there was Fairy Tail, and then Lucy. And—

"Where are we going to sleep?" Happy asked, vocalizing Natsu's thoughts. Best friends indeed. The cat seemed to know what he was thinking always.

"I got a bedroll."

"Camping like we were before, huh?" Happy asked with a grin. "I like sleeping—"

"I don't have anything for camping," Lucy said shortly.

Natsu said, "You can sleep in my bedroll—"

"No." Lucy dug her nails into her palm to keep her cheeks from getting hot.

"Lucy—"

Did he even _know_ what he was saying? Probably not. "Do you have _any_ money?"

"Well, yeah, a little—"

She didn't even get mad that he let her buy him a ridiculous amount of dinner last night. "Enough to get a hotel room for the night?" She felt like a bully speaking so short and clipped, but she was annoyed. If she even had a _second_ to pack she would have been able to grab her savings, her pajamas, and a change of clothes at least. But nope. Not a chance.

"…I guess."

He looked so defeated. There was an apology on Lucy's tongue. She bit it back, thinking, perhaps meanly, that she didn't get so much as a proper goodbye a year before, so why should she apologize for feeling displaced? "What's even open?" Very little.

Happy finally spoke. "When we were here last week there was a motel next to the Thorn and Thistle called Briar's Lock." He weathered a filthy look from Natsu that Lucy missed entirely.

"Good. Rooms are probably cheap."

"…Maybe," the cat said, not so sure. As the only real motel left in town they could charge whatever they wanted. He kept that to himself, not wanting to entice Lucy's ire more.

"Good," Lucy said, purposefully disregarding Happy's hesitant tone. "Let's get going then." She walked faster, pushing past Natsu. He opened his mouth to object—maybe he'd try to make the bedroll option sound more appealing, or maybe he'd suggest going the next town over. Maybe Clover had _something_ —but Lucy was determined. He huffed and followed, hot on her heels, dodging through the debris of half-built buildings, weaving between children and adults that were slowly trudging home after a long day of rebuilding.

"Do you think the town will ever be the same?" Happy asked.

"Absolutely," Natsu said immediately.

"Never," Lucy said at the same time. She shot him a look that he couldn't read, then explained, "I think it'll be rebuilt to the point where no one will recognize what happened here, but I also think everyone will always remember." Tartarus left a mark that couldn't be so easily erased. On everyone.

After that there was a heavy silence that was only broken by the occasional shouts of errant children. Lucy walked quickly, mind churning. "Tomorrow," she said finally, "I'm going to try to find some work."

"I'll come—"

"You're wanted by the King," Lucy said abruptly. "You're not going anywhere unless it's to a jail cell."

Natsu opened his mouth then closed it, defeated.

"Guess you better start on that letter, huh?" Happy asked.

Lucy looked over her shoulder. "Letter?"

"Natsu is going to write an apology letter," Happy explained. Natsu wished the cat would shut up. When he said it aloud like that it sounded stupid, even to his own ears.

Lucy chewed on her nail. "I don't know if that's going to be enough. Those guards really meant business."

"I don't know," Natsu said, trying to defend himself. "Maybe if it's a really good apology…"

"They tried to shoot Happy and I out of the air," Lucy said. "And we didn't even _do_ anything."

"Well," Happy clarified. "I actually flew him up there to write on the wall."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "You two."

Natsu gave her a sheepish grin, glad to hear both resignation _and_ a hint of affection in her voice. She couldn't hide it, not completely. "You know you missed us." Feeling brave, or stupid, or just _trying_ to pretend like nothing had changed, he slung his arm around her shoulders and came in close so their sides were touching. "You think we should get some fish first before we go to our hotel?"

Lucy sighed, resigned. "I guess." She wriggled out from under his touch and refused to read into the hurt look on his face, afraid of what it meant. They walked side-by-side after that, a good, respectable distance between them.

* * *

A sliver of a moon poked out from beneath the clouds and lit the ground in wan light, bright enough that feet didn't catch rocks or logs; knees remained uninjured as they made their way to the riverside. The river, nestled in the last bastion of Magnolia's forest, babbled happily in the blanket of night.

Natsu threw himself down on the ground then went rooting through his pack. From there he pulled out two strings tied to a hook while Happy dug around in the ground for some worms for bait. Natsu selected two flexible branches from a young tree and broke them off for him and Happy. He then tied the string to the end of the branches and weaved the worms Happy brandished onto the hooks. Finished, he offered Lucy one of the twigs. She raised her brow.

"You don't want to fish?" Natsu asked when she didn't take it.

"If you want to eat tonight, maybe not," she replied. The Heartfilia estate didn't offer much opportunity for things like this, which meant that while she got by, she wasn't great at fishing.

Natsu shrugged and settled back cross legged, branch lodged between his knees, and studied the darkening sky. Lucy flopped down, a safe distance between them, and considered the first star to pop out of the night sky.

"Did you think about the guild while you were gone?" Lucy asked suddenly. _Did you think about me?_

Natsu turned to look at her in the dark, his onyx eyes finding hers. "I thought about you guys every day. If I knew that when I got back everyone would be gone…" _I would have come back sooner._ He didn't know if that were true, so he said, "I'm glad I found you."

Lucy didn't get a chance to reply, drowned out by Happy's gleeful cheer of, "I got one!"

The cat stood from his spot next to Natsu and struggled with his line, leaning back hard and taking a few steps backwards. Natsu sat up and reached out to help him. Between the two of them they wrestled a large silvery fish to shore. Natsu set to work cleaning it, then wrapped it up tightly in a wild grape leaf and, with a thought, lit it aflame. It only took a second, the fire was so hot. When it was done, the smell of warmed meat drifting to her nose, Lucy's stomach grumbled.

Maybe fish wouldn't be so bad.

"I knew you liked fish," Happy quipped, hearing Lucy's body betray her.

"Nope, just haven't eaten in twelve hours," she muttered.

Natsu doled out the portions, shamelessly—to Happy's chagrin—keeping the largest for himself. "This is a pretty good spot. We can come back here and try again tomorrow," he said between bites.

 _Tomorrow._ Lucy tried not to feel so downtrodden at the prospect of eating fish twice in as many days. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if that wasn't _all_ they had. "If I have it my way, I'll be eating a steak dinner this time tomorrow. Hey, you think Ackles will buy it for me?" She said it musingly, playfully, and caught a sour look from the dragon slayer. She opened her mouth to say, _"Kidding,"_ then decided not to, unsure if she was or not.

* * *

Mostly full and wholly tired, Lucy looked upon the run-down facade of Briar's Lock with reverence. "They better have some rooms left."

"Room," Natsu clarified.

Lucy glared at him. "What?"

"After I bought our tickets I have enough cash for one room."

"Guess your bedroll's gonna come in handy, huh?" Lucy smirked, for a moment forgetting she was mad.

"Cold," Happy said. Natsu just looked stricken.

She laughed. "There's usually a couch or something. Or, if we ask really sweetly, we might get a cot."

"We could—" _Share._

"Nope," Lucy said abruptly, foreseeing what he was going to say. "We can't." She walked faster, leaving Natsu and Happy to bring up the rear.

Inside Briar's Lock's cracked walls, the place was sort of clean. Which meant that the floors were swept and mopped, the counters dusted, but way up high cobwebs occupied the corners of the room and the daisies that were picked and stuffed into a vase on check-in desk were fresh three weeks ago. Now they were wilted and yellowed, the water they died in grey and opaque. Lucy tried not to get too close to it, leaning over the counter as a pretty, young lady with thick black glasses and long, curly black hair and caramel coloured skin searched for a room for them.

"I have one," she announced finally. "With a single bed."

"And a couch?" Lucy asked hopefully.

"…A loveseat."

"Do you have any cots?"

"Sorry, Miss."

Lucy looked at Natsu's long legs and knew who was getting the short end of this deal. _Better than the ground._ "We'll take it."

Natsu paid the lady and accepted their key, then followed Lucy as she led the way across the lobby and up the stairs. The dragon slayer scrunched up his nose as they went. It smelled like dust and alcohol and some burning substance that stung his nose. "It smells weird in here."

Lucy looked back over her shoulder to see if the clerk heard. She was gone. "You're welcome to sleep outside."

Natsu was tempted. "You're going to come, too?"

As if he was afraid if he turned away she'd disappear and go back to her new life. "Not a chance," Lucy said, stubborn to the last.

"We shouldn't split up."

"Then I guess you're sleeping in the room with me, aren't you?" She kept going.

"I guess." Natsu snapped his fingers again and again, trying to drown out all of the noises he heard that made him blush. It didn't help at all with the smells that came to his nose that made it itch. He focused on watching Lucy's boots as she mounted the stairs. And her legs. And—

Happy nudged him hard. "She's going to beat you up."

"What am I going to beat you up for?" Lucy asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Nothing," Natsu said immediately.

Happy opened his mouth again to spill his secret. The dragon slayer stooped and grabbed him up around the waist, squeezing him tight enough to his chest that the cat could neither writhe nor form a proper sentence. Happy pushed at him for only a moment, then he submitted. Natsu eased his grip and dared to meet Lucy's eyes, an innocent smile on his face. She glowered and that smile almost withered.

She didn't ask him to explain, though. Maybe she didn't want to know. That was fine by Natsu; there was no easy way to explain why he was suddenly flummoxed. She started walking again and he followed, making a conscious effort to lag a little further behind so his eyes fell naturally to the scuffed stair risers instead of her hips.

At a small landing, Lucy stepped off the plywood stairs onto the worn birch wood floor and walked until she found room number 14. She hesitated putting the key in the lock, afraid of what she'd find inside. _Maybe it's clean and tidy. Maybe it smells like lemon and jasmine and_ not _like dust and neglect._

She opened the door and half got her wish. Though it was musty inside, someone had recently sprayed it with air freshener. Natsu sneezed. Three times.

"Gross."

"I think it's perfect," Lucy said with forced cheeriness and waltzed in, flicking on the light.

Dingy was a better adjective. There was a small window with a dank yellow-tinged drape covering it, a cot that looked like more than a few of the springs were broken, a teal coloured loveseat as the lady downstairs promised, and a nightstand with a well-read bible inside. That was it. Aside from the mini fridge, that is. When Lucy opened it and checked inside, the only thing that occupied its shelves were small liquor bottles and four green apples, one of which was bruised beyond what she would even cut off.

Not to be disheartened, she took out one of the apples and bit into it. It was tart and crisp, at least. She closed the door and leaned back against the fridge's steel surface to regard Natsu and Happy. Natsu was already examining the bed, a twisted look on his face.

"Are you _sure_ you don't want to camp?"

"I'm sure," Lucy replied, mostly because they had already come this far. She took another huge bite of her apple and watched Happy clamber up onto the bed's mattress.

"It's lumpy."

"You don't have to stay here," Lucy said again.

"No," Natsu said after a beat. "We'll stay."

Happy harrumphed.

Lucy finished her apple and dropped the core into a small garbage can inside the washroom, then she went looking for blankets. She found that and a pillow shoved up inside the closet by the door. Pale yellow and peppered with cigarette burns, it was thin and scratchy. But she wouldn't complain. Would _not._

Except… "You're buying me pajamas, too." She draped the blankets over the loveseat.

Natsu said, "Do you want a shirt to sleep in?"

Lucy faltered. "Do you have a clean one?"

He shrugged his pack off his shoulders and pulled from it the small bag Happy had delivered the day before. "It's new."

"I'll take it," Lucy said without hesitation. It beat sleeping in the same clothes she wore all day. Especially when she was going to have to wear them all tomorrow, too.

Natsu pulled out a grey shirt long enough to be a dress on her. Lucy took it and gave him a genuine smile that he sucked up like a sponge, happy that he could make her happy.

"See?" Natsu said, encouraged. "It's not all bad. We got a room, you got pj's, and a bed. Tomorrow we'll get a job and then we'll start hunting down Fairy Tail."

"Aye," Happy agreed.

Lucy's smile dimmed. "I'm going to have a shower then go to bed. I suggest you two do the same. Tomorrow we'll deal with the king and getting some money." _How_ they were going to do that eluded her, but… they'd figure something out.

Natsu threw himself down on the bed and watched her disappear into the bathroom. The door closed, the water came on.

"She doesn't sound convinced," Happy said.

"No, she doesn't," Natsu agreed. "But she'll see." And when she did, everything was going to be better. She'd be happy again, and everything could go back to the way it was before.

Happy paced around the mattress. "Are you really going to sleep on this lumpy bed?"

"Yeah, and so are you," Natsu replied. Happy muttered something under his breath too low for even the dragon slayer to hear. He let it go.

* * *

When Lucy exited the washroom both Natsu and Happy were in bed. Happy was curled into the dragon slayer's side, Natsu lay on his back, arm slung up over his brow. Both breathed so deeply she believed them to be asleep. Tiptoeing across the room, she flicked off the light then carefully felt her way back to her makeshift bed. It was a miracle when she made it there without any bumps or bruises.

She dropped her clothes to the floor then climbed beneath the thin blanket, wearing the shirt that smelled faintly like Natsu. Like crushed grass, smoke, very, very dimly of sweat and pheromones from riding in his pack with his other clothes. She wasn't sure how she felt about the smell, really. It was familiar and nice, but it also made her chest hurt. _That_ was a wound that wasn't going to heal easy, though she'd been getting along fine— just _fine_ —before he showed up again. She glowered at the ceiling.

The bed creaked. Lucy held her breath and waited, thinking Natsu was just turning over. But no. Soft footsteps padded over to her side. The dragon slayer crouched and peered at her through messy pink hair.

"You awake?"

"I am now," Lucy said dramatically. He was so close she could feel the heat coming off his skin.

He dropped himself to the ground beside her, tucking one foot under his bottom. He'd taken his shirt off, and his pants. Now he was just in a pair of shorts. Lucy kept her eyes up around his face; not that she could see much anyway, he was too close _and_ it was too dark.

"What do you want?"

"Do you want the bed?"

"Are you just saying that because it's lumpy?" Lucy hissed.

"Well…"

 _Of course._ She sighed. "Go to sleep."

He didn't move other than to put his arm up on the couch beside her. His skin felt even warmer when it was against hers. "Are you really going to go out with that guy?"

Lucy shrugged. "I don't know. Why?"

"Well…" He hesitated then said, "Maybe ask him if the guard needs any work done around Magnolia. Last time we were in town they were helping residents rebuild. We might be able to get some money that way."

Lucy relaxed. Was that all? Evidently. "I could ask, if I see him again."

 _If._ He tried not to hold on to that, or even entertain _why_ the qualifier felt important. "How long is he here for?"

"He said a couple of days," Lucy told him.

Natsu grunted. "Alright. So, you like uniforms, eh?"

Lucy searched for his teasing smile and couldn't see it for all the darkness. "Why not?"

Yeah. Why not?

He shrugged, suddenly uncomfortable but too bothered _not_ to ask, "Did you think of us while we were gone?"

Lucy turned to look at him properly, realizing that she wasn't able to ignore the hesitant tone in his voice. "Of course I did." Not all of it was good stuff, though. He didn't need to know that.

Feeling brave, Natsu pinched a lock of hair between his thumb and forefinger; he didn't _think_ Lucy noticed. It was damp and smelled like cheap shampoo, but he liked it; it was still smooth.

"Did you leave because you didn't think I was good enough to keep up?" Lucy heard herself whisper. She'd posed a very similar question months and months ago; it had gotten her into trouble then. Gray flitted through her mind unwelcomely.

Natsu lifted his gaze from where he watched her silhouetted lips and found her dark eyes. "Is that what you thought?"

"What would you think?"

His hand snuck down to find hers rested on her stomach. "Lucy…"

She waited patiently for him to say something meaningful, to give her some excuse that would be good enough, something that would stitch her up and put everything right again. He only stumbled and stammered, repeating her name twice more before falling into silence.

She pulled out of his grasp and rolled over. "Go to sleep, Natsu."


	4. Chapter 4

There was no sleep to be had. For a long, long time Natsu stared at the golden halo of Lucy's hair and imagined what he could say to dispel the sadness that clung to her like fine dust. When her breathing changed, signaling her fall into unconsciousness, and he still could think of nothing that he thought she'd find suitable, he raised himself from the ground and went back to his lumpy bed. The mattress squealed beneath his weight. Happy grumbled, Lucy made a soft sigh. Natsu scrubbed his face, remembering again Igneel's death. It had been months and months, but at times it still felt raw. He imagined it would for a long time.

* * *

Lucy woke to the sound of pen scratching over paper. Lifting her head, she peaked over the side of the couch and found Natsu sitting at the kitchen table, pen in hand, the piece of paper he brooded over ink-stained. His brow was furrowed in concentration and his lip was jutted out. She watched him for as long as she dared, memorizing every bit of his face from the straight slope of his nose to the arch of his brows to the lively onyx of his eyes. Several feet away, Happy still sprawled out on the bed, snoring.

The cat snorted particularly loud, drawing Natsu's attention away from the paper. He looked around the room. Figuring she was caught, Lucy said, "Hey." It came out quietly so she wouldn't wake Happy.

Natsu startled badly enough he dropped his pen. When he found her he sent a sheepish smile her way.

"Hey." Under his eyes were slightly bruised, like he hadn't slept well. Guilt stabbed Lucy.

"You look tired."

"I'm fine." The dragon slayer bent and picked the pen off the floor.

Lucy dismissed the lie and pushed the blankets back, rising from the couch. The floor was cold beneath her bare toes. She tiptoed to the table and sat down beside him, tucking Natsu's oversized shirt around her legs as best as she could. She leaned in, shoulder bumping his in a silent apology. "What are you doing?"

Natsu pinched the pen hard, breathing her in. She smelled sweet. "Just..."

"Working on your apology letter?" Lucy asked, reading his familiar chicken scratch.

"Yeah," Natsu replied. "Listen, Lucy..."

She turned her head just enough that she could see him out of the corner of her eye. "What is it?"

"I'm not sorry I left," he blurted.

Lucy stilled.

"I am sorry I only left you a letter, though. I should have come to talk to you."

Lucy stood stiffly. "I'm sorry, too."

Natsu grabbed her hand, sensing his apology didn't go quite as planned. "Lucy—"

"I have to get ready, Natsu," Lucy said, pulling out of his grasp. "I'm going to see if I can find us some work."

"Wait—"

She tugged again, forcing him to release her. Defeated he watched her disappear into the washroom.

"You want help with your letter?" Happy asked.

Natsu faced the cat; he hadn't even realized Happy was awake. His neck heated, embarrassed that he had a witness to his dismal apology. He tried to bowl ahead and forget about it. "Yeah." Maybe if it went well he'd know what to say to Lucy.

* * *

Gray Fullbuster sat at the kitchen table in the small cottage he and Juvia rented and crushed a newspaper in his hands. No matter how he bent the pages the words seemed clear as day. 'Fairy Tail Revival?' they said, accompanied by a picture of familiar flames scrawling over the king's castle in Crocus. He didn't need to read any more to know which idiot did that. His guts twisted with something like guilt. That same feeling that had nearly burned him into the ground months ago was back; his lungs were tight and his skin was on fire. His head spun. He had spent a lot of nights outrunning that feeling. There was no place to go now, though.

"Gray-sama." Juvia's voice was husky and sleep choked. She sounded sexy and sultry. Lifting his gaze, he found her leaning against the doorframe, an aqua blue nighty hugging all of her plentiful curves.

"Juvia..."

"Why aren't you in bed? It's early still." She came to him when he didn't move. With every step the first rays of sunlight lit upon her true-blue hair and set it to glittering like the deepest sapphire gem. Her toe nails, painted tree-leaf green, looked stark on the clean white tile.

"Gray-sama?" She was in his lap before he realized, his one leg between hers. First she took the paper from his hand and dropped it to the table, then she grabbed his chin and tilted it skyward. Her dark eyes ate him up, seeing far more than what he wanted to show.

"What are you worrying about?"

Gray allowed himself to touch Juvia's thighs. It wasn't the first time, but her eyes got heavy-lidded and her skin rose in goose bumps like it was. He'd come to like the way she responded to him, all happy sighs, clasping fingers and words of praise. "It's nothing." Or at least he wanted it to be.

"Gray—"

His fingers tracked upwards to the tops of her hips. It was no secret she wore nothing beneath that nighty, but it was still thrilling to feel all that smooth skin. He slipped around and grabbed her behind, pleased when the sound of her croon pushed out his thoughts of Fairy Tail. He pulled her close, finding her waist and kissing it, then closer still, so she was firmly pressed into his body. He could feel every breath she took. Migrating north, he flicked his tongue over the peak of her breast and listened for her pinched moan.

It didn't come. He leaned back to see why. Juvia's eyes were fixed on the newspaper she'd discarded.

"Fairy Tail?" She met his eyes. There was a shadow behind her gaze, but she did well to hide it.

Gray loosened his hold on her body, erection withering some.

"This is what you were reading, Gray-sama?"

He scrubbed his hand behind his head. "Doesn't matter."

"If Fairy Tail is getting back together, it matters," Juvia reprimanded.

"It's just an article, it doesn't mean anything," Gray said.

"That's Natsu's fire," Juvia replied.

Gray opened and closed his mouth twice. In the end he fell silent.

Juvia reached out and touched the ink-stained paper, fingers tracing the letters thoughtfully. She was experiencing an internal struggle, Gray could tell. He always wondered how much she knew and how much she guessed about that night they left. She'd never really said and he'd never gotten the guts to ask.

"When do we leave?" Juvia asked.

"We don't," Gray replied.

"What? Why?" Juvia asked. "Don't you want to go home?"

He chewed his cheek hard. "No." _That's the coward's way_. He never thought he was afraid of very much, but apparently hurt feelings topped the list, snugging up right close to Zeref and END. Lucy's keys seemed to mock him from inside the wallet tucked into his pocket.

Juvia got serious. "Why are you being like this, Gray?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he replied steadily.

"Is it about—"

"Stop." He didn't want to know what she was going to say.

Startled, she wavered, on the brink of letting it go if only he pushed a little more. Gray gathered the dexterity to do just that. Then Juvia dug her feet in. "I think we should go even just to look, Gray-sama. How will we know for certain?"

 _I don't want to know_. But part of him sort of did, too...

"I'll pack up," Juvia announced. "You start on breakfast." She disappeared without giving him any time to respond.

* * *

The sun was hot. So hot in fact that Lucy sweated badly enough that she didn't want to talk to anyone, let alone a man that seemed interested in a date. Going back, however, wasn't really an option. Sucking up her pride, she let her grumbling stomach bring her through Magnolia to the guard barracks.

It was a large building that reminded her of Fairy Hills before it was ruined, if the dormitories were more drab. Tall and grey, it was rectangular with almost no character. The windows were dusty, dirty from all of the construction happening, the doors were thick and scratched. Coming up the ill-kept walkway, she knocked briskly and waited impatiently, wondering all the while it this was actually a very good idea.

The door swung open, answered by a tall man with a head of gingery hair. He looked at her in confusion for three long seconds, then asked, "Help you?"

"Um... I'm looking for a guard, Riley Ackles," Lucy said with a smile. "We met on the train to Magnolia yesterday. He said he'd be in town for a little while—" She trailed off as the subject of her visit sauntered from the shadows behind the redheaded man.

"You came, Lucy." His smile was just as nice today as it had been yesterday.

Lucy found herself wanting to flush. She stamped the feeling out right quick, remembering why she was really there. "Of course. I wanted to see if you wanted to get dinner maybe tomorrow or something?"

"Get out of here, Bessel." He pushed his fellow guard out of the way and came to lean casually in the doorway. His shoulders were wide enough he almost didn't fit. As he leaned into the light Lucy saw that his five o'clock shadow was still there, leading her to believe he did it on purpose. "Why not tonight?"

"I need to find some work, actually," Lucy replied. "I thought I'd spend today looking around, ask some of the locals if they need any help or anything..."

He popped out his bottom lip and considered her. "The guard might need a hand. We've been pretty busy lately. What kind of work are you looking for?"

"Anything," Lucy said immediately, pleased that she didn't even have to try that hard. "I'm a celestial mage, so if you need help rebuilding, or guarding, or anything really—"

He considered her. "A mage, huh?"

Lucy smiled nervously, remembering Natsu's 'Fairy Tail' message on the side of the castle. "Yep."

"Belong to a guild?" The look he was giving her was definitely suspicious.

"Nope—I'm too nomadic for that." It was only half of a lie. "I like to travel around for work—just freelancing, you know? It makes for interesting tales."

Riley relaxed a little. "I get that. You're a celestial mage you said?"

"That's right." Lucy grabbed her keys at her hip and wiggled them around. "I don't want to brag, but I'm pretty awesome." If she ignored the nagging voice that told her almost every day for the last year that her team ditched her because she wasn't good enough, it almost felt true.

"I'm sure you are. Let me talk to my supervisor, Lucy, but I'll let you know now, we've got a criminal that's still at large and to be honest, we don't really have the time or resources to catch him."

Lucy's stomach dropped away. "The one that wrote on the castle?"

"Eh? Nah, not that guy. I mean, if we run into him then yeah, but we've got bigger fish to fry. This guy's been hanging around the senior's homes on the west end and robbing the old folks in there. Really dirty stuff, eh? You'd think they'd be easy to catch, but they use transformation magic. The guards stationed here full-time have no idea what the thief looks like. You think this job is something you'd be up for?"

"Yeah," Lucy agreed after only a moment's hesitation. "Definitely."

He said, "Hey, don't feel like you have to take this job. It's only if you're comfortable doing this kind of stuff. If you're tight on cash and want some easy money, we're really behind on our paperwork—"

"I'd prefer to catch the criminal," she said too fast.

Riley raised his brows. "Yeah?"

"Yeah, of course," Lucy told him with surety. She wasn't nearly as confident as she sounded, it had been a long time since she'd done a job like this, but she'd been training a lot in the last year, trying again and again to just be better so she could outrun the dangerous train of thought that said if she had have taken things more seriously the year before, then maybe Aquarius wouldn't have had to sacrifice herself and Natsu...

 _'I'm not sorry I left.'_

 _'He's an idiot.'_

She didn't ever think she was wretched, but she hated herself in that moment.

"Lucy?" Riley asked. "Hey." He waved his hand in front of her face. "You alright?"

Lucy blinked, realizing she'd been staring into space. "Sorry, I was just thinking about the last job I did like this," she lied. "It was a cakewalk. I'll have your criminal caught in no time."

He smiled. "Well… let me talk to my supervisor before I officially offer you the job, just to make sure it's okay."

"Sure," Lucy agreed.

"In the mean time, I think you should take the night off to have dinner with me, my treat. I'll catch you up on everything we know about the suspect, and tomorrow, if everything gets approved, you can get to work."

"That sounds like a plan," Lucy agreed. All she had to do to get some work was go out for dinner with a guy; that wasn't so bad, right?

"You're staying in the Briar's Lock?"

"The only place in town," Lucy said with a depreciative laugh; it wasn't at all because she was totally broke.

"Which room, so I know where to pick you up?"

Lucy thought of the fugitives she was hiding away and felt a twang of panic. "I'll just… meet you outside, if you don't mind?"

He did actually look a little insulted, but he weathered it well. "Sure, no problem. At six?"

Lucy checked her watch; it was just after eleven. That gave her enough time to scare up something to wear, maybe. "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

After Natsu finished his letter to the best of his ability, Happy offered to deliver it to the post office for him, which meant that Natsu had the room to himself. He thought it would give him plenty of time to sleep after his restless night, but really it only gave him plenty of time to think; plenty of time to consider how much he missed his hammock, for sure. Plenty of time to think about Lucy's _'go to sleep, Natsu.'_ She sounded so

 _disappointed_

He'd never encountered that kind of despondence before, not from her. It made him mad—because really, did she not understandwhy he left? Obviously not—and it made him sad because he'd never seen her so guarded before.

The motel door opened and the object of his plight came through, bright eyed and full of smiles, radiant in a way that he'd missed for months and months.

"Natsu!" Lucy's voice was high and singsong. She bounced over and smacked him playfully on the shoulder. "I maybe just got us a job."

He sat up, unable to hold back his own smile. "Yeah?"

"I talked to Riley just like you suggested."

He faltered. "Riley?"

"Ackles. The guard," Lucy said. "He told me there's this douche that's been robbing seniors on the west side of town. The guards are too busy to catch him and he keeps giving them the slip, but I think with your freaky nose and _my_ amazing abilities, we can sniff this guy out. Riley just needs to okay it with his supervisor first."

A little more of Natsu's funk dissipated. "Awesome work, Luce."

She smiled at his appreciation, giving herself a moment to congratulate both her tenacity and good fortune. "Yeah. Now I just need a dress to wear."

Natsu screwed up his face. "A dress? What for?"

Lucy gave him a plaintive look. "Riley is going to give me the details of the job tonight over dinner."

"You're not going to hang out with me and Happy?" He didn't much care for how disappointed he sounded.

Lucy shook her head apologetically. "Sorry, Natsu, I would but I think this is pretty important."

"Why? He already told you pretty much all you need to know. Just get his supervisor's name and talk to him yourself," Natsu argued.

Lucy shook her head again. "The King's guard pays really well for this kind of work, you know that. A good word from Riley could mean more jobs like this in the future."

"When Fairy Tail reunites, we won't need handouts from the guards."

Lucy's smile inched down. "In the mean time, we need work."

Natsu tried to keep his scowl to a minimum and attempted to stick to the facts. "Well, how am I supposed to sniff out this person if I have guards looking for me?"

Lucy gnawed on her lip. "You're right. I'll handle it on my own."

"Lucy—" That was _not_ his intention.

"No, Natsu. I got this."

His ploy totally backfired, the dragon slayer was overrun by irritation. She was supposed to say, 'In that case, we'll find something else, Natsu.' Not, 'I'll do it on my own, thanks.' "Fuck. Come _on._ "

Looking at his pinched, aggravated expression all of her sharp edges softened. "Hey." She bent so she could more clearly see his eyes. "I know you're frustrated, but it's only for a little while." She hoped.

He blew out a hot breath and scrubbed his face, telling himself all the while to calm _down._ It wasn't the end of the world if he wasn't involved; it wouldn't _kill_ him to sit out of the action for just a bit, even if it _felt_ like it would.

Seeing his shoulders ease Lucy asked, "I hate to ask, but do you have any more money, Natsu?"

He met her eyes, hands still pressing his cheeks together. "For what?"

"For that dress for my date," Lucy said as she took out her pigtails. Her hair was still damp from her shower that morning. She laced her fingers through it, brushing it straight.

"Thought it was just dinner so he could tell you about your thief?" Natsu asked. His voice sounded bitter, even to his ears.

"Yeah, yeah," Lucy said dismissively. "Call it whatever you want. It's our ticket to being able to feed ourselves again."

Natsu, wearing a severe frown, took off his boot and pulled up the insole. There, shoved into the bottom was his last bit of emergency money. "That's all I have. This job better fucking be worth it."

Lucy leaned in, coming closer to the dragon slayer than she'd willingly had in days, and took the money from his hand. Looking at him from beneath her thick, dark lashes she said, "I'm going to take half of this and get us our room for another night, then I'm going to buy the cutest dress you've ever seen. I'm going to charm the hell out of Riley Ackles and I'm going to land us the best paying job Magnolia can offer. _Then_ I'm going to catch our thief and I'm going to give you all your money back." Having no debt between them would be a preferable thing.

Natsu pushed past the hot wave of something unpleasant that welled inside of him. "Are you _sure_ you have to go out for dinner with him?"

"Yes," she said positively.

Natsu tried again. "And you're _sure_ you won't need my help?"

A lick of irritation almost took away Lucy's smile. "I can do this job on my own."

"Yeah, sure you can," he agreed. "But wouldn't you rather have me there as backup?" He knew _he'd_ definitely feel better about it.

"I'd rather you stay out of jail right now, actually," she replied. "You and Happy just hang out in here. Speaking of, where the heck _is_ he?"

Natsu admitted, "He went to deliver that letter to the King."

"Good. Hopefully he'll be in a forgiving mood."

"Yeah. Okay, but Lucy—"

"Seriously," she interjected. "Stay out of trouble until we know for sure what's going on. I'll handle this."

Her voice was so sharp, Natsu actually recoiled. Lucy had never felt meaner, but the idea of him going away for even longer made her chest clang with that old familiar hollowness. "I don't want you to disappear again." The last she offered as a bit of an apology as well as an explanation. His stricken expression melted into one that she could only call pained. So she didn't have to look at him wearing that betrayed and forlorn face any longer, she stood and said, "I'm going to head out and get that dress. I'll be back."

Natsu watched her hair swirl around her shoulders as she stood straight, then he watched her back as she walked away. He kept looking long after the door closed, trying not to think about Lucy having dinner with other men while she wore the dress that _he_ bought for her.


	5. Chapter 5

Lucy paid for their room for another night, then, with the change tucked into her pocket, she went to the only clothing shop Magnolia still offered, Barbra Cotty's Fine Threads. It used to be a nice store, though a little on the expensive side. Now it was still expensive, what with everyone trying to rebuild while still eking out a meager existence, but it's facade was no longer pristine. Tartarus had destroyed more than half of the building. The one side where the Men's section used to be was totally torn down. A huge blue tarp kept out the rain while the owners tried to organize renovations.

As soon as she walked in, a large woman wearing a white dress that looked more like a bedsheet as it fell over her massive rump, picked her bulk up from the struggling stool she sat upon and waddled to the half-crooked front door.

"Good morning, Miss." She had a girly voice, one that didn't befit her size. Her face, as round as the moon, was expertly done up in makeup. Her eyes were bright and lively, a beautiful shade of gold-flecked brown, while her hair, a soft mouse brown, was meticulously brushed.

"Good morning." Lucy smiled. "I'm looking for a dress for a date tonight. Do you have anything that's affordable? I'm on a budget."

Disappointment flitted behind the woman's eyes; her face cleared half a second later, though. In Magnolia, beggars couldn't be choosers these days. "I think I have just the thing." She got her rump motivational, waddling with great purpose to the back of the room. Lucy, unsure if she should follow or not, wandered behind more slowly, marvelling at all of the things she didn't have money to buy, not that she'd ever felt frivolous before, but she'd always had money before, even when she'd griped about things being tight. She sighed, feeling very much like an uprooted plant.

 _Things will get better once you get this job._ Natsu wasn't very happy with her, she knew, not that she was making things any easier either. _I'll make it up to him_ , she thought with conviction, though she didn't know _how._

"Size?" the woman asked, her high voice bringing Lucy back to reality.

Lucy told her. The girl went searching through a rather thin looking rack and came out with a red halter dress that dipped low in the front, climbed high in the leg, and, once it was on, would cling to every little curve she had. "How is this?"

"Oh."

"Oh?" The woman raised her pencil thin brow.

' _Oh, it's more revealing than I'd planned?'_

"This is the most affordable dress we have in stock," the woman said before Lucy could complain. "Not only that, it's the only one I believe will fit you."

Lucy wavered, yet she was trapped either way. "Sure. I'll take it." Her sandals would look cute with it, too. Perfect.

The woman rang her up and said a discomfited goodbye. Lucy waved and, with trepidatious steps, headed back to the hotel room she shared with Natsu.

* * *

The dragon slayer was still by himself when Lucy arrived, and it seemed like his mood hadn't improved very much. He sat at the table in the same position as when she'd left, his chin firmly stapled to his hand.

"I got our room for us for another night," Lucy reported, apprehensive to shatter the wall of silence but refusing to live like mutes for as long as they were staying together.

"Thanks." The reply came short and clipped.

"And I got my dress. Pretty great, right?" Ooooorrrrr not, judging by the fierce scowl he wore. She produced from her pocket his change, setting it on the scratched table in front of him. "That's what's left over. And," she said with forced lightness, "I got you something, too."

Natsu lifted his hand from his palm and studied her warily. "What?"

Lucy held out the second bag she carried. He took it cautiously until the smell rose and hit his nose. Deep fried batter, cinnamon sugar. His stomach grumbled loudly.

"Yeah?" His voice sounded more hopeful, like maybe he'd been having second thoughts about this getting back together thing, but this one act was healing.

"Yeah," Lucy agreed, hopeful herself. "Go ahead."

Natsu opened the bag like a starving man and grinned when he saw the donut. "Terry's bakery is still kicking?"

Lucy scrunched up her nose and said with as much tact as she could, "Not really. His son is running it out of a tent over on Main Street."

"Where's Terry at?" the dragon slayer questioned.

Lucy sighed, knowing when she bought the treat this inevitable question would arise. "He was killed, Natsu, in the attack. The bakery was right in the line of fire."

Natsu got quiet. Lucy thought he wouldn't eat the donut. He surprised her by finding something to look at out the window and silently munching on the treat. Lucy left him to his thoughts, the clock not-so-quietly ticking on the wall, and went to the washroom to get ready.

* * *

It was too clingy by half. Way more revealing than anything she'd worn before. The dress said more, ' _I want this night to end in your apartment'_ than, ' _I'm looking for work and I really need you to help me out.'_ She entertained wearing the clothes she'd come in but scratched that idea a moment later. _It's fine. Nothing has to happen_. She'd had more than enough of men recently, anyway. They always seemed to complicate things in surprising ways. _With some help from you, to be sure._

She wondered after Gray again, imagining what _that_ reunion was going to be like. Awkward as all hell, if he bothered to show. And Juvia? Lucy almost cried thinking about the mess. _Deal with that after._

Using her fingers, she combed her hair. The air around her shimmered. Lucy paused, fingers tangled in a particularly gruesome knot, and watched Virgo appear.

"Princess."

"What are you doing here, Virgo?" Lucy asked.

The spirit held out a brush and a slew of cosmetics. "I understand you have a date tonight."

Lucy didn't bother asking how she knew; she and her spirits were more tightly bound than ever. "Thanks, I guess." She took the makeup and the brush and started working on her knots.

"That dress is very revealing. Is it a special kind of date?"

Lucy's cheeks flared.

"Lucy?" That was Natsu's voice. "Someone in there with you?"

"Oh, is it a date with Master Natsu?" Virgo asked.

"No," Lucy hissed. "It's just Virgo," she said louder.

"Virgo?" The sound of Natsu's feet scuffing over the floor drifted through the door. "Yo, what's going on?" He grabbed the handle and tried it. Lucy, though she was decent, was horrified to see that it opened unhindered.

"Stupid cheap ass hotel," she cussed when Natsu's pink head of hair came into the small room.

He opened his mouth to say something else to Virgo but trailed off when he saw Lucy. His eyes roved shamelessly over her body as if he committed to memory every freckle and curve. Feeling uncomfortable for a whole new reason, Lucy wrapped her arms around her chest; it did little to hide her bosom.

"Get out, Natsu."

Natsu shook himself. "Virgo—"

"You can catch up _later_ ," Lucy said. "I'm trying to get dressed."

"You can keep going, I was just going to—"

The tips of Lucy's ears burned. Striding forward, she grabbed Natsu by the shoulder and pushed him out of the bathroom. She closed the door firmly and engaged the lock again. This time when she jiggled the handle it remained closed. She breathed a sigh of relief.

"Do you not want Master Natsu to see you like this?"

Lucy found Virgo leaning against the counter. She scowled at the spirit. "I don't want _anyone_ seeing me like this. This guy is going to think I'm easy or something."

"Do you want new garments from the celestial world?" Virgo offered.

Lucy's world slowed. She blinked dully at her spirit. "What?"

"Do you want—"

"I _heard_ you," Lucy spat. She composed herself with some effort. "I just—I didn't think of that."

Virgo beamed. "I'll bring you something for your date."

Lucy nearly said yes. Nearly. "I spent Natsu's money to get this dress."

Virgo paused, body half in and half out of this world. "So you _don't_ want garments?"

"No, no. I _do_ ," Lucy clarified. "Just… for other stuff. Not for tonight. But I have nothing, Virgo. No pajamas, no underwear. Once these are done," She snapped her thong for emphasis, "That's it."

"Leave it with me, Princess."

"And," Lucy tacked on. "Could you get Natsu some stuff, too?" He had to be running low on clothes as well.

Virgo bowed and disappeared. Lucy puffed up her cheeks, scolding herself for being so thoughtless. Now they had no money and she was stuck wearing a dress that was going to give Riley the wrong idea. Nothing for it but to smile. She brushed out her hair then gathered it to the side and braided it. Then she used the makeup Virgo gave her and applied a small amount, eyeliner, mascara and cola coloured lipstick, that's all.

Mostly ready, she came into the main room to see Natsu hadn't gone far. He leaned against the wall in the narrow hallway, blocking her path into the other room. He was staring at her again. Lucy remembered waking up next to him the morning before, feeling his body against hers. Blood rushed to her head. _That's not what he's thinking._

"Virgo can get us new clothes?" the dragon slayer asked, unintentionally putting Lucy's mind at ease.

"Yeah," she said. "Sorry, Natsu. I didn't think of it before. If I did I wouldn't have bought this."

He sucked on a tooth and nodded. "It's a nice dress."

Lucy shrugged. "I guess."

"Looks good on you." The compliment came a touch too fast. _Nervous._ As far as Lucy could recall, Natsu Dragneel didn't _get_ nervous. Nor did he give out compliments—not like that. _Things have changed. He's changed._ The realization hit fast and hard. Shyer than before, Lucy made to sneak past him. He grabbed her wrist and held her still.

"Wait."

He needn't have said anything; she couldn't move even if she wanted to.

"You have…" He was going to mime, then an insane urge came over him. With his heart going too fast, Natsu reached out and touched the corner of Lucy's painted lip, edging the colour back into place like he'd watched Mira do countless times while he sat at Fairy Tail's bar. It was harder than the takeover mage had made it look. Or maybe he was clumsy; his fingers weren't meant for this delicate work. He did what he could, body burning so close to Lucy. When he was done he held his position, her cheek cupped in his hand, afraid to move and break the spell that had her no longer furious with him but breathing in short, shallow pants that tickled when they broke across his skin.

He loved her like this he decided, her lips nearly as dark as her eyes, her skin pale like moonflower. She'd rimmed her eyes with something as black as coal. Now they stood out and sawed through him, a stark contrast to her golden hair. He realized he'd touched it's ends only when it was sliding through his fingers like the finest rolled gold.

His eyes were back on her dress again. The soft fabric wouldn't let him go, taking him all the way down her body, appreciating every dip and swell as if he'd never seen them before. He didn't know what burned him up more, the fact that he loved the way it looked on her, or the fact that he'd bought it for some other guy to enjoy. As soon as the thought came to him he turned it over again and again, deciphering it every way he knew how. Every answer he got at the end of the puzzle revealed the same thing.

He was jealous.

He didn't _get_ jealous. At least, not typically.

"Natsu?"

There was a quiver to Lucy's voice, one that rolled on through him and shook him down to his core.

"Natsu?"

 _Natsu._ He liked the way she said his name. It snagged coming out of her throat, silk on a splinter.

"Don't go tonight, Lucy."

Lucy took a step back and felt the wall beneath her shoulders. Natsu had backed her into a corner quite literally; she wasn't sure when that had happened. He was still looking at her strangely in a way he never had before; he was still _touching_ her. Her lungs fluttered, feeling like there was a bird trapped inside. She couldn't get oxygen to _breathe_.

"I have to." She didn't know she was still capable of speech. That was being generous, though, her words slipped out a husky whisper.

"Says who?"

"What about that job, Natsu—"

He licked his lips. Lucy's heart squeezed all the more. She could smell the sweetness of his breath after he'd eaten that donut, she could feel the unusual hotness of his skin. She'd been close to the dragon slayer plenty times before, but never like this. Her mind warred, one side saying, _'He's going to kiss me_ ,' the other admonishing the thought with, ' _It's_ Natsu _, he never cares about stuff like this.'_ At least, he never used to.

He came in closer, edging in so his breath mingled with hers. _He is,_ Lucy determined. _Definitely. I can't. I can't._ If she did and he disappeared again, she'd buckle and give in to those late night thoughts that kept her up for months and months. Yet she couldn't move, either. Closer and closer. His eyes got heavy lidded like he was drunk. _Move. Move. Move._ His hot breath broke over her lips. She felt dense.

The sound of wings brought the pair jarring apart. When Natsu turned to see what the fuss was, Lucy ducked under his hold and bolted for the door. She didn't bother saying goodbye; hell, she barely remembered to grab her sandals.

The door slammed loudly at her back. Happy, coming to land on the bed, looked at his red faced friend.

"Smooth."

"Shut the hell up, Happy," Natsu muttered.

* * *

Riley was waiting outside when Lucy rushed from the motel. Seeing her sandals clutched in her hand and adding that together with her red face he asked, "Is everything alright?"

Lucy made herself breathe and _smile,_ though in her head she was all turmoil. "I'm fine." Every lie she'd ever told herself always seemed to be the same. _I'm fine._ She ran away from an abusive home. _I'm fine._ Her father died without her being able to say goodbye. _I'm fine._ She watched her future self die before her eyes. _I'm fine._ Aquarius sacrificed herself and now couldn't leave the spirit world. _I'm fine._ Her friends and the only family she had abandoned her. _I'm fine._

"Are you certain?"

"Yes." Lucy fixed her shoes on her feet. "Sorry. I was just running around trying to get ready. I was worried I'd be late."

He nodded, accepting her answer. "You look very… lovely this evening." His eyes clung to her like he thought so, too.

Lucy decided that it was the dress, and when she was done with it, fuck Natsu, it was going in the garbage.

* * *

Dinner was had at Magnolia's only restaurant, The Fox and Fiddle. Originally they served bar food, but since the city was destroyed they had been branching out, making more elaborate meals to fill up that niche market. They charged more for it, too.

Riley ordered a steak, Lucy had shrimp quinoa.

When the food came Lucy diligently ate while Riley spoke. He seemed to be able to talk enough for both of them. His food was long cold before he even took the first bite. Given the opportunity, Lucy's mind wandered back to the place where Natsu was pressed against her in a dingy little motel. It was a scary place to be, mostly because she kind of liked being there. She ordered wine. One glass, then two. It didn't help ease her jumbled nerves. What the hell was she going to say to Natsu when she got back? What if he tried to kiss her again? _What if you let him?_ She flushed.

"Are you unwell, Lucy?"

Lucy blinked and realized Riley was looking at her strangely. "Sorry. I'm just distracted."

"By?"

She cleared her throat and palmed her wine glass. "Did you talk with your supervisor?"

Riley eased back in his chair and eyed her up. "I did, actually."

"And?" she asked eagerly.

"He gave his permission. I have to ask again, though, are you sure this is the job for you?"

Lucy's ire caught like fire in dry kindling. _Don't freak out_. But why the hell was everyone asking if she was okay with the job? Did she not _look_ okay for it?

"I can catch a thief."

Riley nodded. "No offense intended."

Lucy smiled. "It's fine."

"Wonderful." He brushed off his concern easily. "Did you want to go to the Thorn and Thistle, have a few drinks?"

The Thorn and Thistle... That place had caused a lot of strife in her life. _It wasn't the bar_ , she told herself. _It was you._

"Come on, Lucy," Riley pushed, "You're too beautiful tonight to just take back to your room, and I'm only going to be here for another few days."

She blushed despite herself.

Encouraged, Riley said, "In the barracks we have this saying, if you're not drinking, you're not playing."

Lucy wavered. She didn't want to go back to her room, not yet; she still didn't know how to treat Natsu.

The sound of buzzing interrupted her decision. Riley's face fell. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a glowing communication lacrima.

"Excuse me."

Lucy waved him on and watched as he stood and crossed to the exit to answer his call. She played with her left over food while she waited, her mind wandering inexorably back to Natsu. _Natsu, Natsu, Natsu._ The feeling of his thumb touching her lip, his warm hand on her cheek, his mouth millimeters from hers.

Riley reappeared. "I apologize, Lucy. That was my supervisor. There's been an incident that requires all guards to return to the barracks."

"Oh. Is everything alright?"

He smiled. "Forgive me, I cannot say."

Right. Lucy stood, fixing her dress. "That's alright." No, it wasn't: it meant she had to go back to Natsu and try to decide what his actions meant, but sitting here by herself wasn't a better option. _It's not_ , she reasserted when her mind tried to glam up the possibility.

"I'll walk you back; it's on the way."

"Sure."

* * *

After Lucy disappeared, Natsu wanted to go out and wander; he felt too restless to sit still, but Happy had been the voice of reason, reminding him that he was still technically a wanted criminal. He nearly didn't care.

"Lucy will be mad if you get arrested."

The cat's reasoning was sound, if not frustrating. "I don't want to stay locked up here forever," Natsu complained.

"It's only for a little while. Just chill out."

So, for the last two hours Natsu shamelessly hung out of the window and watched for Lucy's signature blonde head of hair. The monotony was broken up by the appearance of a pink haired celestial spirit.

"Master Natsu."

Virgo smelled as strange as ever, otherworldly and oddly powerful. "What's up, Virgo?"

The spirit brandished a huge pile of clothing. "For you and Princess."

"Thanks." It would have been nice before Lucy spent all of his money, but hey.

She started to fade again.

"Wait," Natsu called, standing and planting his palms on the table.

Virgo paused. "What is it?"

"Aren't you going to hang out for a bit? I'm so bored."

She shook her head. "I need to be well rested in case Princess needs me. Goodbye."

She disappeared for real this time. Natsu stared at the place she'd been.

"Wanna play Go Fish?" Happy asked.

The dragon slayer shook his head. They'd played the hell out of that game in the last year; he was sick of it. "Nah."

"You shouldn't just sit there and obsess," Happy said.

"I'm not," Natsu replied.

"That's crap. You're mad she went out with that guy."

Natsu threw himself back down in his chair beside the window and propped his cheek on his knuckles. "Why would I be?"

"Because, you want to kiss her like you kissed _Lana_ ," Happy chirped.

Natsu glared at him. "She kissed _me._ And only because she was glad we saved her brother from that monster thing. And she was drunk."

"You're just sore she threw up right after."

 _That_ had been unfortunate. _At least Lucy didn't give you that treatment_. "Just… go find something else to do, Happy."

"What were you two doing when I came in?" the cat asked, dismissing Natsu's suggestion entirely.

"Nothing."

"Didn't look like nothing. Did you actually kiss her?"

Natsu kicked his feet up on the small table by the window and leaned back in his chair, unwilling to play Happy's game any longer. He looked down to the street below and watched the people stroll past. There were less than there'd ever been before; Magnolia was a ghost town. _Why did you come back? It's still just a skeleton._ It wasn't the first time he'd thought it, but it was the first time he felt like he had to _justify_ himself to that knit picky voice that tried to tear him down. _Everything will be better soon. Everything will go back to the way it was._ If he said it enough times it might even be true.

By the time Lucy deigned to round the corner, Happy was snoozing on the table and Natsu was very, _very_ close to following him. It was the fear dredged up at the sound of her voice (he'd never kissed a girl and had her run out before; what the hell did that mean?) and the elation that had his adrenaline going, bringing him out of laziness. Both emotions were quickly stamped out by something like anger when he saw Lucy had that stupid guard at her shoulder. Not only was he walking entirely too close, he had Lucy's arm wrapped through his. Lucy's laugh came to Natsu, sounding light and carefree. He'd missed the sound.

"She's back?" Happy asked, coming awake when Natsu sat up properly.

"Yah."

There was a moment where when the pair approached the building's front door that Natsu wondered if Lucy was going to bring the man upstairs. Then she carefully extracted her arm from his. The man leaned in.

Sensing what was coming well before Natsu did, Happy said, "Maybe you shouldn't spy on her, Natsu."

Natsu realized what was happening and couldn't look away. His guts twisted watching that stupid pretty boy come in for her mouth.

"Natsu," Happy said, concern in his voice. He grabbed Natsu's shoulder and tried to push him away from the window.

Natsu brushed him back and was glad a second later. If he had have listened to Happy, he wouldn't have seen Lucy turn her face away so the guard got her cheek instead of her mouth.

"Huh," the cat snorted. "Maybe the date didn't go very good."

Lucy laughed again and said something else; then they separated, going their own ways.

Natsu waited thirty seconds then stood and went to the door, pulling it back just as Lucy was about to unlock it.

She jumped, obviously startled, and shot a furtive look up into his face. "Geeze. You scared me."

"How'd it go?" Natsu asked, not bothering to apologize.

Lucy shuffled in around him, careful not to meet his eye. Her cheeks were as bright as apples. "Really good."

 _Really good._ He ignored the way his stomach wrenched.

"His supervisor said yes, I could have the job, _and_ he said that if it went well he'd consider hiring me back. Apparently they've been having problems all over Magnolia with petty lawbreakers. And Riley says I'll be generously recompensed."

"Huh?"

"Paid," Lucy said. "This is for you and Happy." She held up the box of left overs.

"Thanks." He opened it and looked at the weird beads of food inside. "What the hell is this?"

"Quinoa. It's good for you." Lucy slowly started to relax. This was normal. _This_ Natsu she knew how to handle. "And really, you should thank Riley. He looked at me kinda strange when I bought the largest order they had, but he didn't complain."

It wasn't likely he'd be thanking that guy anytime soon. Using his hands because he had no utensils, Natsu started eating the grain.

"Don't forget you have to share," Happy said. "I smell those shrimp."

Natsu grumbled but held out the container.

Lucy stooped, careful about how high her dress went, and tugged off her sandals. The outside of her toe was sore where it rubbed against the thong. She started pulling out her braid next, working the locks free of their entrapment. "Did Virgo come by yet?"

"Yeah." Natsu pointed to a pile of clothes on the bed. "Left that there. She wouldn't stay though."

Lucy was used to Virgo's abruptness so it didn't surprise her. "Good. I'm going to change and go to bed."

"Well, I'm bored," Natsu complained. "Come out for a walk with us. We can go scope that old folks home."

"I'm so tired," Lucy said. "I'd really rather just go to bed."

"I'll piggyback you. Or Happy can fly you."

"I can?" the cat questioned. "I remember last time. I'm still sore from that."

Lucy gave him her best glare; it helped outpace Natsu's casual offer of intimate contact. She'd rather not think about being that close to him. "No thanks. I'm wiped. You shouldn't be wandering around anyway."

Natsu went to the pile of clothing Virgo brought and picked out a large, comfortable looking hoody. When he donned it and pulled the hood over his head, his face was completely hidden in shadow. "No one's going to know it's me."

Lucy sucked in a breath and held it.

"Come on, Luce. I've been cooped up in here _all day_."

"What if someone sees you?" she asked.

"They won't."

"But what if they do and you get arrested?" Her voice had developed a whine she wasn't proud of.

"They won't."

He sounded so confident. _And remember what Riley said—they weren't actively looking for Natsu anymore._ She looked at the dragon slayer's hopeful expression and knew if she kept him cooped up in here any longer he was going to start wrecking stuff. "Fine. But just go for a walk, a _small_ one. Don't pick any fights, don't go looking for trouble." She almost added, _'And don't leave without me,'_ but managed to hold that one in. "Don't be long."

"You're not going to come?" Natsu asked.

Lucy shook her head. Her feet actually _did_ hurt, and she _was_ actually tired. "I'm just going to clean up and sleep, I think." If she could rest.

He looked crestfallen, but eager enough to get the hell out of there that it didn't hold him back. "Coming, Happy?"

"Aye," the cat agreed.

Lucy watched them leave from the window. Some things were always the same. To keep her wandering thoughts at bay she went rooting through the clothes Virgo left, picking out three dresses, a skirt, a pair of shorts, and four different tops. The last in the pile was a skimpy nighty.

"Are you freaking kidding me?" It was blue and gold, short and silken. "Not appropriate sleepwear." She reached for the spirit, trying to call her back into this world, but Virgo was shockingly (purposefully) absent. She tried again and again, but nothing was doing. Loke flashed through her mind next. _Just imagine what he'll choose instead._ Grumbling, she went to the washroom, cleaned her face, brushed her hair and changed. The nighty was as small as she feared, clinging even more then her dress.

"Damnit, Virgo." She popped her head out into the room first. Seeing she was still alone, she made a mad dash to the couch, pulling the blankets all the way up to her chin, and curled on her side. Like she suspected, though she was tired, sleep was hard to come by. She kept revisiting that moment in the hallway, with Natsu pressed against her.

 _It doesn't matter._

She didn't _want_ that kind of thing, especially from a man that was so goddamn flighty. She imagined she'd wake up one morning and he'd just be gone. _That's not fair,_ her mind scolded. Fair or not, it was a real fear.

* * *

Under a mat of stars Erza closed her eyes and enjoyed the pulsing feeling low in her belly. The cool mid-summer air played over her skin, raising it in goose bumps. Jellal's fingers might have had something to do with that, too. They traced up her exposed belly, teased under the swell of her breast, then skipped over the sensitive skin there, brushing and pinching and tickling her hard nipple.

Lowly, she murmured, "I thought you were finished?"

Jellal nipped the topmost swell of her breast, unable to help himself. "Yes." His voice came out gravelly. "I should let you get back, before your absence is noted."

Wendy flashed through Erza's mind. "She and Carla are together. We could stay out here a little longer."

"But they'll both be together out here if they wake and notice you're missing." His logic was sound, even if Erza didn't _want_ it to be.

"Come with me."

Jellal kissed her chest over his earlier bite. "You know I can't."

"I know you won't."

His tongue slipped out and lapped over her skin, tracking closer and closer to the tip of her breast. Erza, though annoyed, bowed into his mouth anyway, unable to help herself.

"If I could I would," Jellal whispered.

"There are no more dark guilds," Erza reasoned. "So travel with us."

Jellal sat back and searched her eyes. "What of your reputation?"

"What about it?" she returned.

"Being with me will ruin it. I'm an outlaw."

"I don't care," she said and it was mostly true.

Jellal faltered. "What of Crime Sorciere?"

"Leave them," she said.

"Leave a band of barely moral criminals to wander through Fiore on their own."

Erza bit her lip, feeling selfish, and nodded.

Jellal squeezed her ribs almost painfully hard. "I can't—"

"Please."

He was close to buckling. He _wanted_ to be with her; she saw it. She opened her mouth to beg again. He interrupted. "Fairy Tail is reviving." It looked like it cost him something to say.

Erza blinked. "What?"

"I saw it in the newspaper, and Sorano spoke to her contact at the castle and confirmed it."

Erza's world slowed. _Fairy Tail._

"I cannot go with you there."

Erza steeled herself. "If you're saying that to make me leave, it won't work."

"It's the truth," Jellal told her. "The king's castle was defiled by fire, the words " _Fairy Tail_ " scrawled across its walls."

There was only one idiot Erza knew that was brazen enough to do that. _It has to be true._ But still... "I'm not going back." Everything she wanted was right here. "I'm going to stay with you."

Jellal cocked a dark brow. "That's a lie. You miss Fairy Tail. Besides, would you force Wendy to travel on her own?"

Erza faltered like he knew she would. "Shit."

"Just go, Erza. We'll still see each other. Just less frequently."

"But—"

"But nothing. You love your guild. Go."

"What about—"

He kissed her thoroughly, severing her words. Erza tried to get away to protest. He grabbed her breast again, plucking to distract her. She settled under a blanket of pleasure. His hand wandered south between her legs and the remainder of her protests fizzled into a low, hot moan.


	6. Chapter 6

Magnolia wasn't the same town, not by a long shot. In Natsu's memory, the streets were adorned with flowers on every light post, there were mature trees on every corner, houses hugged the streets with pies and breads in their windows, and those that did not had wind chimes instead, their high pitched sound both eerie and sweet. Now the light posts were gone, most of them destroyed, meaning that the streets were dark, there were nearly no trees, and thusly no means to carry the scent of baking or the sound of laughing chimes to his ears. There were just broken bits of concrete, piles of destroyed buildings that had been gathered up, ready to be burned or carted away. The main streets had been repaired, but the side roads were still full of fissures, some of them wide enough to swallow children. The last time they were in Magnolia, they hadn't ventured this far into the city proper. Natsu expected the damage around Fairy Tail, but this?

"Holy," Happy said in a voice that was hushed by awe. "It looks like they haven't done anything to clean it up."

Natsu shook his head. "They've done a lot; you can see where they've picked up the rubble." It was just a lot of stuff that had to be moved.

"I guess," Happy agreed.

"The old folks home is this way," Natsu said after a moment. He pushed his body forward; the movement helped keep his thoughts linear.

"You don't want to just go for a walk like Lucy said?" Happy asked.

"Nah. Can you imagine if we caught this guy tonight? Lucy could get her money and she won't have to talk to that douche ever again," Natsu said.

"It seemed like she really wanted to do this job on her own," Happy told him.

"Maybe she'll be mad at first, but she'll thank me for it after," Natsu replied. A little nagging voice in his head said that wasn't true. He brought his hood up over his head and ignored it.

The journey to the west end of Magnolia took twenty solid minutes of fast jogging. It helped burn off some of his restless energy, so Natsu didn't mind. Happy took to the air above and kept an eye out for any guards. There was hardly anyone in the streets. In fact, there was hardly anyone in the town, it was a skeleton of its previous glory, the only people that stayed there were the ones that couldn't afford to leave, the old and the invested, and the ones that swore to rebuild it, carpenters and stone masons.

Approaching Weldon Street, Natsu slowed to a walk and tried to control his heavy breathing. Above the sound of his frantic breaths he heard voices.

Happy came out of the air. "There's something going on up there."

"What?" Natsu asked. The wind blew and carried with it the unmistakable scent of blood.

"I don't know," Happy said. "All I saw was a bunch of guards standing around."

Natsu hurried his pace, curiosity burning. Coming around the side of a huge white stone building, Natsu was momentarily blinded by torchlight. He blinked his eyes clear and saw that torches had been erected in a circle, taking the place of street lamps. Trapped in the wreath of the fire's warm glow was a peculiar scene. As Happy claimed, there was a group of men in guard uniforms standing in a circle. Their talk dropped several levels so Natsu had to strain to hear what was said.

"It looks like an animal attack."

"What kind of animal do you know does this?"

"Dunno, maybe a mountain lion?"

"Don't be stupid. We got the guy in custody, he admitted to doing it."

"Then he must be some kind of beast," said one of the guards. "A monster or something. A—a demon."

Natsu got chills down his spine. He came closer.

"Don't say stuff like that," hissed another guard. "Next thing you know, we'll be inundated with them again."

"Don't be so superstitious."

"Natsu," Happy warned when Natsu ventured too far in. "Someone's going to see you."

Natsu shrugged him off, wanting a closer look. His boots scuffed over the broken cobblestones, sending one shattered rock skipping to the outer circumference of the circle of men. One guard lifted his head and found Natsu in the dark. Panic flitted behind his eyes.

"This is a restricted area. No civilians"

Natsu came closer still with little regard for his safety. "What's happening?"

"Get out of here." The guard stepped towards him. In that moment when he moved Natsu got a brief glimpse at the body behind him. It was a woman, one with blonde hair of the same golden luster as Lucy's and unseeing brown eyes. Her head was tipped in his direction, her mouth gaping, opened to emit a final scream that had come out voiceless. Her throat was a mess, torn wide open. And lower, too. Natsu saw the mass of what could only be her organs. He closed his eyes and looked away, shocked and sick. His stomach churned.

"Did you not just hear me?" the guard demanded.

"What the hell?" Natsu opened his eyes but kept his gaze on the ground, afraid to look up.

"I said get out of here—"

"We can't let him go, Kolder. He's got to come in for questioning," said a new voice.

Natsu's stomach dropped. He lifted his gaze and found two guards standing in front of him. One had his handcuffs out. "What?"

Happy mimicked him.

Another guard appeared, the one that went out with Lucy. He looked at Natsu, holding up his torch. "Hey, you're the one the king was looking for."

"No," Natsu disagreed foolishly, but the damage was already done.

"Do you think I'm an idiot or something?" He was going for his handcuffs as well. "I can't fucking believe you just walked your stupid ass over here—"

A scream pierced the night. Natsu stiffened, so did the guard. The man lifted his communication lacrima. Into its glowing surface he barked, "What's going on?"

A voice drifted out from the other side. "Another victim, Ackles. Just attacked." His voice wavered.

"That can't be right," Ackles said, "I've got the guy in custody-"

"Then he was working with someone, they're fleeing on foot, heading back your way."

"Shit," the man cussed. He threw the lacrima back into the pouch at his hip and growled orders at the men surrounding him. Everyone got motivational, Natsu was forgotten. In the chaos he stood absolutely still and watched while guns and billy clubs came out. Everyone dispersed, some going left, some going right around the old stone building that had withstood Tartarus' attack, until only two people were left behind, a male and female guard to watch the body of the young woman that was killed. Natsu felt his eyes being drawn back to her. _She looks just like Lucy_. He refused to check. Lucy was back at their motel room, safe. _And they don't smell the same._ Not that he _wanted_ to smell her, but he couldn't help it, her scent was everywhere. Cherry blossom deodorant, coco lip gloss and blood.

Not wanting to look at her anymore, he turned his focus out into the night, stepping out of the fire's glow and into darkness. The sound of feet sliding over grass and broken glass and bits of gravel was all he could hear at first, then heavy breathing. A yell came to his ears next, making him tense. It was close. Feet pounded.

"Someone is coming," Happy said.

Natsu turned a circle in time to see a scrawny man with stringy grey hair duck out of a small fir stand. He soared over the ground, moving far too fast for his body. He was looking over his shoulder so he didn't see Natsu, not until his foot caught and he started to go down, and by then he was practically on top of the dragon slayer. His eyes went wide, his hands stretched out, gruesomely bloody, and landed on Natsu's sweater.

Natsu grunted, the air forced from his lungs. Caught by surprise he stumbled back to regain his balance. His foot jammed on one of the stray stones and together, he and the running man, tumbled backwards. Natsu hit the ground hard. It was one of the most ungraceful falls he'd ever had. The man on top of him sputtered, spittle flying out of his mouth and hitting Natsu in the cheek, then he scrambled like a spider fighting to get off its back, struggling to disentangle their bodies.

"Natsu!" Happy cried.

The other man's elbow landed in the center of Natsu's chest, his knee in his balls. The dragon slayer choked and wheezed, torn between wanting to cup his dick and whimper and grab the man and beat him until he stopped trying to get away.

He didn't get a chance to decide which way to go. A shot rang out in the night; the grey haired man went completely rigid, then absolutely limp. As soon as his heart stopped, a cold draft tore through the area. When the wind stopped howling, warmness reeking of iron spread over Natsu's sweater. Natsu lay totally limp while he processed what just happened. Someone had been shot on top of him and now he was dead. There was a dead guy bleeding on him.

Grunting, he pushed the man off. He rolled, limper than an under-stuffed rag doll. In his absence, Natsu stared into the face of the guard that did the shooting. It was Ackles. He looked dazed for a moment, like he didn't know who he was, or why he was standing there holding a gun. Then his face cleared. He looked at Natsu.

"Alright?"

Natsu's mouth was dry. He tried to work some saliva onto his tongue.

"Did you get shot, too?" Ackles asked, his voice rising with panic.

"Natsu?" Happy said. His eyes were as wide as saucers. He shambled over like a drunkard.

Natsu found his voice. "I'm fine." His legs felt like jelly, though, unwilling to obey him. He scared up the will to rise.

Ackles stuffed his gun into his holster just as three other guards appeared. "He's dead," Ackles called over his shoulder.

"Fuck," one of the other guards swore.

Ackles stepped forward and nudged the man with the toe of his boot. "Good riddance, I say. What about that girl?"

"As soon as you took off she died," the other guard responded.

Ackles sighed and pointed to Natsu. "Take this one in for questioning."

"Woah," Natsu protested. "I didn't have anything to do with this."

Ackles raised his dark brows. "I think we'll decide that back at the guard house."

"Listen," Natsu said, "I'm not going anywhere."

"Either you come willingly or you come in chains," Ackles said carefully.

Fire licked at Natsu's fingertips with little effort.

Ackles took out both his handcuffs and his billy club.

"Natsu," Happy cautioned. "If you fight you'll get arrested, and if you get arrested Lucy will be mad."

The thought of Lucy's disapproving and _disappointed_ frown made the dragon slayer ease back. His fire fizzled out.

"I'll go tell her what's happened," Happy offered, "So she's not worried."

"Get the cat, too," Ackles said before Natsu could thank him.

"I don't know anything," Happy protested as two guards moved in on him.

"Then you won't mind one bit, will you?" Ackles asked. "Don't worry, boys, once we question you, we'll contact the king and decide your punishment for that stunt you pulled the other day. Should be quick processing you."

Natsu ground his teeth together. _Fight, or cooperate?_ His first instinct was always the same. Fight. Always fight. He knew which method would get him arrested for sure, though. "You're not putting those cuffs on me."

Ackles replaced the cuffs but not his club. "As long as you don't give me a reason to use them, you can walk to the guard house all on your own."

* * *

Her sleep was terrible; Lucy flitted in and out of nightmares without much shape, except for the few most damaging. Aquarius slipping away from her, and Natsu, Gray next after she used him to fill a void neither of them could afford to fill, then everyone else until she was absolutely alone. Lived alone. Died alone, miserable and ashamed to be that way.

Her eyes came open abruptly, fear making her heart beat fast. It took her long seconds to place where she was. In the motel room she shared with Natsu and Happy. _They came back_. Her heart eased.

She blinked her eyes clear. The light in the corner was still on. Lifting her wrist, she checked the time and saw that it was two thirty in the morning. So late. She sat up on the sagging couch and checked the room. It was empty. She looked down the hallway, searching for the light in the washroom next. It wasn't on.

Her stomach wrenched. "Natsu?"

Even before his name finished exiting her mouth she knew he wasn't there, nor had he been all night. _He's gone again._ Her eyes trekked to the table, half expecting to see a note left behind with her name scrawled across the front. It was barren. _Guess you weren't good enough for a note this time._

She shook the startling and depreciative thought clear of her head. _He's just… he's still out_. That brought on a whole new set of worries. If he was still out, that meant something happened. He was supposed to go for a _quick_ walk. This... It was well, well beyond that.

She pushed back the blankets and dressed in a pair of short shorts Virgo left for her and chose a loose fitting long sleeved sweater. Her keys went on her hip last. They were warm, Loke's in particular, the lion spirit letting her know he was watching. She appreciated the gesture, not entirely thrilled about wandering around Magnolia on her own when it was so dark. _You could stay here_ , she thought, but knew if she did, that self depreciating voice would chew her up and hollow her out.

She locked the door on her way out.

* * *

Natsu sat in a new T-shirt that wasn't his and stared at the man that had taken Lucy out on a date. He decided that he hated him. Ackles hadn't said much, but everything he'd bothered saying wasn't worth listening to. It could be too that Natsu had a big problem with being ordered around. He sat there, though, with his mouth closed and Lucy on his mind.

The next room over was connected by a thick metal door, as if the guards expected a military-grade attack. Through it, Natsu could hear Happy being grilled about his involvement first in the defacing of the castle, then in the murders.

"Look, I had nothing to do with that shit tonight. I was just out for a walk, in the wrong place at the right time." Natsu kept his eyes open for as long as he could, staring at Ackles staring at his coffee, because every time he blinked he saw that blonde woman, the one with hair like Lucy's, the one with half of her face missing. His guts felt sick.

Ackles wore a blank expression for so long, Natsu thought he didn't hear. Then he said, "I know."

The dragon slayer sputtered. "If you know, then what the fuck am I doing here?" Every second that went by was a second that he wasn't with Lucy, that Lucy could wake and think he'd taken off again. Stress-caused heartburn was a real thing. He put on a good face.

"We're waiting for the king to return our call," Ackles said.

Natsu rolled his eyes and sat back in his hard metal chair. "This is bullshit."

Ackles shrugged. "That's what you get when you're a deadbeat chump."

Natsu's irritation spiked. "What did you just say to me?"

The door opened, saving Ackles from himself. A guard with red hair came in, carrying a communication lacrima. "Sir."

Ackles took the lacrima and looked into it's glowing face. "Your majesty. We have the criminal known as Natsu Dragneel."

"Very good," the king's voice came. "Let me see him."

Ackles turned the lacrima so Natsu could see the man. He looked older than when he'd seen him just days ago. He also looked furious.

"You burned 'Fairy Tail' into the walls of my castle, Natsu." His thick grey brows were knitted tightly together, his mouth sewn in a deep frown. "The bricks need to be replaced."

Natsu pursed his lips. "Really?" _Must have been shitty brick, then_. The fire didn't burn for _that_ long. He kept his thoughts to himself, thinking the king wouldn't appreciate them.

"Yes, _really._ Do you know how much that cost the kingdom?"

Natsu ignored the question and asked, "Did you get my note?"

"Do you think an apology makes up for all of your transgressions?" the king sputtered.

Natsu shrugged. "I was always told 'sorry' goes a long way."

The king's mouth got tighter. "This time sorry isn't good enough."

"Then what?" Natsu asked. "Are you going to throw me in jail, leave me to rot?" He'd been there and he was over the shitty scenery.

The king shook his head. "No, Natsu. I'm binding you by oath."

Natsu screwed up his face. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, there is a time soon approaching where the kingdom of Fiore may need you to fight for us. Your fists in battle will be your punishment."

"That's it?" Natsu asked. Ackles gave him a strange look that he ignored.

The king agreed, "That's all."

"And my charges go away?"

"Until you do something else foolhardy."

Natsu rubbed his damp palms over his pants. "I'm in."

The king didn't smile. "Stay near to Magnolia."

* * *

The streets were quiet, eerily so. Lucy walked and walked, tension in every step, and looked at every shadowed figure in every shadowed corner she could find, seeking Natsu's signature shock of hair. She went as far as to approach a bundle of clothes tucked beneath a small bridge that spanned a trickling river. Her heart crashed into her ribs while she navigated the rolling river stones. Mud slipped over the edge of her sandals and squelched wetly between her toes. She nearly went down twice and recovered rather clumsily.

At the water's edge finally, Lucy hung back from the pile of clothes, afraid that it was Natsu, afraid that it wasn't. "Natsu?" The bundle shifted. It was a person, then. "Natsu?" Lucy hissed again.

The pile moved, then the blankets peeled back, exposing an old man with gray, dreaded hair. "Eh?"

"Sorry," Lucy muttered and booked it out of there. On the street again she did her best to ignore her feet sliding in her sopping sandals while she surveyed her options. She was just wandering around aimlessly. "Where are you?" Where the hell would he even go? Not to the river, that much was obvious. Frustrated tears snuck up on her. She was crying before she realized it. Annoyed, she swallowed them back and swiped her cheeks.

 _What else in Magnolia survived the attack_ , she wondered. Where would Natsu go? She could only think of one place, the bar district. _Would he?_ Maybe.

She smoothed her hair back and walked with purpose towards the Thorn and Thistle. Along the way she passed by a few smoking teenagers, an old woman walking a vicious dog that barked at Lucy like a lunatic and lunged when it was close enough, and a middle aged man with glassy eyes and a pervy smile. He leaned against a barber's shop, a cigarette between his two worm-like lips, Lucy, determined to be thorough, looked into the alley behind him.

"Looking for somethin'?" He was barely comprehensible.

Lucy kept her eyes away from him. She could see the Thorn and Thistle and thusly the guard barracks. She was close. Close enough to feel safe.

"Hey. I'm talking to you here you know?"

Lucy walked faster.

"You got some place to be or something?"

"Yeah, actually," she said shortly, then wondered if talking to him at all was a huge mistake because he gathered his weight beneath his feet and stumbled in her direction.

"Hang on a minute."

"Leave me alone," Lucy said. Her hands were on her keys.

"I just want to talk to you."

It didn't look like he had talking in mind. Lucy stepped quickly. The man followed, his footfalls surprisingly sure now that he had a goal in mind.

"Got lots of guys tryna talk to you or something? You think you're too good to talk to me?"

He sounded so close. Lucy didn't want to look over her shoulder but did. He was right there, closer than he had any right to be. "Fuck off, before I kick your ass." Her voice shook vexingly.

He didn't listen, reaching for her. His clammy fingers brushed over her hair.

Lucy choked on a whine and balled her hand into a fist, adrenaline spiking. She was reeling back to swing when the air to her side lightened and Loke stepped through a gate of his own making. He punched the man so hard he fell flat on his ass, stunned and out cold.

Loke shook out his fist. "Slob." He turned burning hazel eyes on Lucy. He looked furious. "On what fucking planet was this a good idea?"

Lucy breathed shakily. She realized she was crying again. _Seriously_? She swiped the tears away.

Loke softened and reached for her. "Hey—"

Lucy ducked out of his grasp. "Don't."

He sighed. "Do you want me to help you look?"

"What the fuck is the point? He's gone," Lucy surprised herself by saying.

Loke was quiet.

Lucy wiped her face again, then took a breath to steady herself and held it. "I'm going to tell the guards this creep is here."

"And then?" Loke asked.

Lucy exhaled. "Then I'm going to keep looking." Because even if he did leave, he would have said _something._

Loke said, "You shouldn't be on your own. Magnolia isn't the same place it used to be."

Lucy gave him a furtive look, torn. She didn't want _anyone_ to see how shaken she was. On the other hand, she didn't want to be alone. Loke offered her the hand without the bruised and cracked knuckles. She took it, grateful for the support he offered.

"Do you think he left again?" Lucy asked as she let Loke turn her towards the guards' barracks.

Loke blew out a long, noisy breath. "Honestly?"

"I wouldn't ask if I wanted you to lie," she said.

"I didn't think he'd leave the first time, Lucy, so I don't know."

Lucy's heart ached. "What if he's in trouble?"

"It's Natsu," Loke said. "Of course he's in trouble."

* * *

Lucy dropped Loke's hand as they approached the barracks so she could knock on the door. The lion spirit stepped back into the shadow and crossed his arms over his chest patiently. A few seconds later, her knock was answered. It was Riley that pulled back the door this time. He looked just as handsome as ever, maybe more so in his full guards' uniform. Lucy was careful to keep her eyes away from his wide shoulders.

"Lucy, this is a surprise," he said before she could get a word in edgewise. He had yet to see Loke. "I'm on duty still, but I'm just finishing up some paperwork. If you wanted to wait…" There was a spark in his eye that Lucy was wary of.

"Actually… I just came to report a man in the street. He tried to grab me."

Riley's face fell. "He did? Are you hurt?"

She shook her head. "I'm fine, but I'm afraid he'll try to do it to someone else. He was pretty drunk. I left him unconscious just there." She pointed not five hundred meters away.

Riley rolled his eyes. "They always are blitzed. Wait here, I'll get another guard to take care of him and I'll walk you back to your motel."

Lucy shook her head, thinking of Natsu. "It's okay—"

"No one should be walking the streets alone at night," he said automatically.

Loke stepped out of the shadows. "She has me with her."

Riley startled back. "And you are?"

"This is one of my spirits, Leo the Lion," Lucy explained.

The man looked over Loke's signature suit with a hint of distain. When he looked back to Lucy, there was some competitiveness in his eye. "Very well. Listen, Lucy, I'm glad you stopped by tonight. I wanted to tell you, I caught that criminal we were looking for on the train."

Lucy's lungs stopped working. "Pardon?" she squeaked.

"The dunce walked straight up to us," he laughed. "Can you believe that?"

No, she could _not_. "You arrested him? He's sitting in your jail?"

Riley's expression soured. "Well… not quite. It seemed the king had other plans for him."

A small knot loosened in Lucy's chest. "So he's free? When did he leave?"

Riley gave her a surprised and slightly suspicious look. "Why so curious?"

Lucy made herself calm down and shrug nonchalantly. "Just… want to keep my eye on dangerous criminals is all."

"Well, I don't know if you have to worry about a graffiti artist," Riley said.

Lucy put on her best face and pulled out her best acting. "I just don't know if I like the idea of so many criminals wandering around Magnolia. You have to think about this stuff when you're travelling by yourself."

Riley looked to Loke again. "You're right. Are you sure you don't want me to walk you back?"

Lucy smiled and touched his arm, impatient to the last but taking her time with this. "I really appreciate it, but I know you're busy. I'd rather you spend your time catching people that need to be caught." Riley relaxed so Lucy asked, "When did you say that guy left?"

He shrugged. "An hour ago? Two?"

For the _hundredth_ time, Lucy's heart sank. _Two hours ago_? Two hours ago and he didn't make it back to the motel room. _He's gone. He's so far gone and he didn't say a_ thing _._

 _Stop, stop, stop._

She couldn't completely smother the nagging voice, though. "Thank you, Riley." She started to turn away.

"Lucy?" he asked at her back.

Lucy looked over her shoulder. He leaned against the doorframe, his thick lashed eyes looking shadowed, even in the light of the moon. "What is it?"

"I'd like to invite you to the beach tomorrow. It's my day off."

Lucy chewed on her cheek until it hurt. "I wanted to catch that criminal tomorrow."

He sighed. "You're a hard worker."

 _Just poor_ , Lucy thought but didn't say. "Another time?"

He nodded. "My stay here was extended by a couple of weeks. Another time will do."

* * *

Wendy Marvel sat on top of an air conditioning unit outside of the hotel room she shared with Erza and swung her feet. Moonlight glazed her black shoes, making them shine, the tights on her legs _whooshed_ each time her calves brushed together.

Cheria Blendy sat at her side, so close that their hips were touching. "I'm glad that you guys are close by," she whispered.

Wendy leaned back and stared up at the moon. It shone bright like a silver coin. "It was nice to see you, but I think we're going to be on the move again."

"Why do you guys wander around so much?" Cheria asked.

Wendy peered through the drapes into the room where Carla still slept. All was quiet inside. "Promise not to say anything?"

Cheria raised her pale brow. "Who am I going to tell?"

Wendy shrugged. "No one, I guess. There are a lot of times Erza's catching up with Crime Sorciere."

"Like, hunting them?" There was a twinge of awe to Cheria's voice.

Wendy shook her head. "She comes back smelling like Jellal's cologne." She blushed.

"Get out," Cheria squawked.

"Shh," Wendy hissed. "She doesn't know that I know."

"Sorry," the girl replied. "Just… Really?"

"She's in love with him, I think," Wendy confided.

"People get weird when they're in love."

"Do you think so?"

Cheria nodded. "They always want to be near the person, their heart hurts, it's all they can think about." She got a faraway look in her eye.

"Sounds kind of nice," Wendy said.

Cheria turned her head and looked at her through her lashes. "Until you're the one pining for someone you can't be near."

Wendy smiled. "I don't know what that's like. Maybe one day."

"You're lucky," Cheria mumbled.

Wendy was about to ask what she meant when she heard the sound of boots crunching over gravel. Her heart leapt into her throat when Erza's smell drifted to her, rosewater and Jellal's musky cologne. She was about to leap off the air conditioner unit and hide, but there was no time. Besides, what was she supposed to do with Cheria?

Erza's head of scarlet hair came around the corner. She had been looking at the ground, a vague and tired and _sad_ look on her face, but she heard Wendy shift and her eyes came up, alertness taking the place of her other emotions. She relaxed immediately when she found Wendy. "Wendy, you scared me."

"Sorry, Erza."

"What are you doing out…" She trailed off, her eyes coming to rest on Cheria. "Cheria. What are you doing here?"

Cheria smiled. "I heard you two were in the area, so I thought I'd pop by and say hello."

Erza nodded, accepting her answer. "It's good to see you again, Cheria. It looks like you're doing well."

"Very," Cheria agreed.

Erza's heart slowly returned to a more reasonable pace. She looked back at Wendy. "Wendy, I planned on telling you in the morning, but seeing as how you're awake… Apparently Fairy Tail is reviving. We leave in the morning."

Wendy's breath came out all at once. "What?"

Erza nodded. "I was surprised, too. It could just be a rumor, but I think it's worth checking out." She smoothed her hands over her dress, a nervous gesture if Wendy had ever seen one. The dragon slayer didn't ask where she got this information from, figuring that was the source of Erza's discomfort.

"Don't stay out here too long," Erza said after a moment of silence. "I want to leave early."

"Yes," Wendy said.

Erza nodded. "Good night, Cheria."

Wendy watched her until she disappeared into the ground-level hotel room and closed the balcony doors. She felt unwelcomed tears press into her eyes and couldn't hide them completely from her best friend.

"What's wrong?" Cheria asked. "I thought you'd be happy that Fairy Tail is reviving, but you look miserable."

Wendy shrugged, trying to put her finger on it. "I don't know… I guess I kind of liked how often we got to come out this way."

Cheria smiled. "Awe, you're going to miss me."

"Of course I will," Wendy said automatically.

"We'll still see each other."

"Not very often."

Cheria held up her hand. "I swear to come see you absolutely every opportunity I get."

Wendy still wasn't sold. "What if we go off on a huge mission and it takes us months?"

"I'll still find you," she promised.

Wendy wasn't so sure.

"Hey." Cheria reached across her middle and grabbed her wrist, forcing Wendy to look at her. "Smile, Wendy. You love Fairy Tail, and now you'll have a home again. There's no reason to look sad."

Wendy tried a smile and got even more watery than before.

Cheria pulled Wendy in for a tight hug. "Don't cry. I'll see you again before you know it."

Wendy clutched her back and buried her face in Cheria's thin shoulder. She smelled like lemon and felt familiar, warm and comforting. Long moments passed in silence. When Cheria finally leaned back she used her thumbs to wipe away Wendy's tears, a complex expression on her face.

Wendy's heart turned. "What is it?"

Cheria wetted her lips then moved in. Her mouth landed on Wendy's in the briefest kiss. The dragon slayer was so startled she just let it happen. Cheria moved away in the next second and hopped off the air conditioner like nothing had happened.

"Good night, Wendy."

Wendy didn't say goodbye; she was too busy touching her burning mouth.


	7. Chapter 7

Chewed gum, soggy cigarette butts, drink cups and other miscellaneous litter filled the cracks in the concrete street. A tin can _click, clack, clacked_ down the gutter, the sound the dreariest music Natsu had ever heard. It perfectly befitted the ominous weight this night in Magnolia held. He couldn't place the exact source of his unease, but it was verily palpable. Maybe it was the man that had been killed on top of him (he'd never forget the feeling of his heart stopping) or the image of the dead girl looking at him with eyes the same shape and colour as Lucy's. But he didn't think that was it. He'd seen men and women die. He'd taken lives of his own. It was always unsettling, and the first time he'd done it had made him sick for days, but it was something he'd learned to live with. No, this was different. It was like being watched and judged. Sized up.

He didn't bother with the sidewalk, choosing to wander down the center of the empty roadway with his hands stuffed deeply into his pockets.

"Where are we going?" Happy asked. His voice echoed off the cracked bricks belonging to slumping buildings.

"...I want to go back to the retirement home," Natsu responded.

"For what?"

Yeah, for what?

While he considered his answer he breathed deeply of the air. Rain. Rain and watery blood. The smell drew him back the way they came, back towards the dead girl, a slave to morbid curiosity. He had to admit, even if it were only ever to himself, he was completely fascinated and _horrified_ by how closely she resembled Lucy. It was in her feathery golden hair, in her once-kind eyes, in her delicate neck and hairpin collarbone. The hope was that seeing her again would dispel the immediate comparison he'd made in his mind. Perhaps then he wouldn't see Lucy in her place when he closed his eyes and relived that moment. He'd already seen her lifeless once.

 _What about the real Lucy_? He told himself that she probably hadn't noticed his absence.

The lie wasn't as sound as he would have liked. He was good at tuning it out.

Though his legs felt like jelly from the last run he'd done a few hours before, he pushed himself, wanting to get back to the area, see what he could see, then get out of there and back to Lucy. Seeing her alive and well would further disperse the image that lingered in his head like smoke in a breezeless valley.

"Natsu," Happy admonished. "Talk to me."

"I want to see if that girl is still there," he said finally.

Happy jogged a few paces to catch up with Natsu's long steps. "That girl? Which? You don't mean—not the one that was hurt?"

 _Killed_ , he thought but didn't correct Happy. The cat's voice wavered in a way Natsu recognized. He was scared. "Yeah."

"What for?"

 _To get the image out of my head_. It wouldn't make sense spoken aloud. "I just want to check it out, okay? Those guys were talking about demons and stuff and I felt this… _thing_ when that guy died." It was the best way he knew how to describe the cold that left the dead man's body.

"Thing?"

"I don't know."

"You're freaking me out," Happy said. "What was it?"

Natsu couldn't say, though. He shook his head.

Happy regrouped. "Well, you know she's not going to be there. For sure they already took her away. They wouldn't want people like us hanging around and stuff, staring at her."

The dragon slayer's footsteps slowed as he realized Happy was likely right. It had been hours since he stumbled upon the scene. _Now what?_

"Let's go back to the motel, before Lucy thinks we ditched her again," Happy said.

Natsu faltered, obstinate to his last breath. "We're almost there. Let's just go take a quick look first, then we'll head back to the motel."

Happy puffed out his cheeks. "Natsu—"

"Or you can go back," Natsu said. "Tell her not to worry."

"And leave you here after all that?" Happy rebuked.

Natsu rolled his eyes. "I'll be fine." He'd been caught off guard before, but now he was ready for any weird thing the night might throw at him.

Happy shook his head. "I'm staying." Maybe because he himself was scared. His fur stood on end along his back and his eyes were wider than medallions.

Natsu sighed. "Come on, little buddy. We're almost there." He encouraged his muscles to jog because he felt slightly lethargic. Sleeping on that lumpy bed was going to be a godsend when they finally made it back to the motel.

Overhead, thunder rumbled in the distance and the first drop of rain descended upon his nose. Happy grumbled miserably.

There were few people out on the streets before, but now there was even less. A woman sat on her porch, a bottle of beer in her hand as she watched the thunderstorm move in. Natsu gave her a passing glance. Next he moseyed past a teenager with hair so short and a shirt so loose that Natsu couldn't tell their gender. _They_ sat on the concrete culvert that spanned a trickle of stream that terminated in a pond choked with cattails. The final people he slipped past were two guards posted on the old age home's perimeter. Both were female, both had their hands resting loosely on their guns.

Natsu stayed out of their line of sight, sticking to the shadows. Happy looked like he wanted to say something but only opened his mouth when they were out of earshot. "Do you think the attack had anything to do with that thief Lucy was trying to catch?"

Natsu turned the words over in his head. The more he thought about it, the faster his heart beat. "No one said anything about killers."

"Yeah, but what are the chances that she was trying to catch a thief here and then those girls were killed?"

Natsu wondered what the second girl looked like, if she was blonde, too. _Stop thinking like that._ "Maybe it's just coincidence." _And if it's not?_ But who the _hell_ would want to hurt Lucy? Moreover, who the _hell_ knew she was even back in Magnolia?

He couldn't make the lines connect to the dots.

Coming around the edge of the ancient building, Natsu toed through the garden, pants getting caught on the thorns of rose bushes, boots crunching over the sandy soil. The smell of blood was more potent here. He was close to where the second girl was killed then. There was no light, though, and no people, nothing to indicate any sort of investigation was ongoing. _Maybe they worked quickly_. He rationalized it, saying that they caught the two men who perpetrated the attacks. His stomach still felt like it was full of lead.

"It stinks here," Happy said.

Natsu breathed more deeply and realized that yes, beyond the scent of blood, it also smelled like sulfur. Rot. And… and something familiar. Though he attempted to dredge up the source of his déjà vu it felt like there was a blockage in his memory. Nothing would come.

Something silver caught his eye, buried half in and half out of the sandy soil. Crouching, he placed his palm against the wall to steady himself. On contact, a sharp pain pierced his hand, startling. First it was hot, then it was cold. He cursed and brought his hand up in front of his face, using the weak light of the streetlamp to see by. There, in the center of his palm was a thorn the size of a small nail.

"You okay?" Happy asked.

"Yeah." Natsu plucked the thorn out. Blood welled to the surface. He sucked it away, tasting the copper, and looked for the plant it came from. He found it reaching up along the wall, its body, while prickly with thorns, was desiccated and dry, its stems black like tar. It had been dead for a long time. He didn't even know what it was. Some ornamental, he supposed.

"Why hasn't someone torn out this ugly piece of shit?"

Happy gave him a quizzical look. "I don't know. Maybe they're busy with other things?"

Natsu frowned and summoned a bead of flame. It ate through the plant with stunning speed, burning it from the world. For a few seconds the darkness was illuminated in orange and red. Happy flicked in Natsu's periphery, an unsteady wraith. A small shiver rolled unwelcomely down his spine, though why, he couldn't say. His palm hurt.

"I don't think we're going to find anything here, Natsu. Let's go," Happy said.

He remembered the metal. "Hang on." He found it again and dug it out. It was an earring, one with a scarlet heart hanging from its center. It looked familiar. Another chill spider walked down his spine.

"What is it?" Happy asked.

"An earring."

"An earring? Do you think it belongs to one of those girls?"

Natsu shook his head. "I don't know."

Thunder rumbled, so close both Natsu and Happy jumped. Happy laughed nervously. "Come on, Natsu, we're about to get soaked.

He was right, but Natsu lingered for a moment longer, sniffing the air for Lucy's scent. Nothing, just the man that had died and the guards with their gun powder and oiled steel aroma. "Yeah."

The sky opened up, rain coming in droves.

* * *

The motel room was empty. Natsu stood at the door, dripping water all over the parquet flooring, and stared at Lucy's tousled bed. There was a small scrap of what must have been a nighty thrown haphazardly on the lifeless pillow she used, there was the other clothes Virgo had given to her, obviously rooted through, but there was no Lucy.

"Where is she?" Happy asked.

Gold and scarlet entangled in Natsu's head. Golden hair. Scarlet blood. His palm burned. He didn't allow himself to look at it, more concerned with the immediate difficulty. Where the hell was Lucy Heartfilia? _The other girl?_ The other girl that he didn't get a chance to see?

Without a word he turned on his heel and braved the rain again. It would be difficult to track her in the torrent, but no one would say he didn't try.

* * *

Lucy shivered, soaked through in no time by the driving rain. Now her feet really were slipping in her sandals, so every other step was a struggle. Loke reached through into the celestial realm and brought out a black and white polka dot umbrella. He held it over their heads while they walked, his left shoulder and most of his back getting soaked. He didn't complain.

They did a circuit of the immediate area surrounding the barracks. It produced nothing. Not to be deterred, Lucy broadened her search, her mind going through a myriad of scenarios, each one more terrible then the next. She put up a roadblock in her wandering mind when things got particularly dark.

"We should try the old guildhall," Loke said when they finished their next roundabout.

Lucy pushed her knotted hair back from her face. "Why would he go there?"

"Nostalgia?" Loke suggested.

Lucy wavered.

Seeing where her thoughts were going again, Loke said, "What I said earlier… it's probably not true. He said he wouldn't leave again, Lucy. We're going to find him wandering around lost or something, knowing him."

"He was only supposed to go for a quick walk and now it's pouring rain." She jumped when thunder rumbled.

"He was probably trying to clear his head."

"Of what?" Lucy demanded.

Loke gave her a look that said, _are you really going to make me explain it?_

Yes. She was.

"He tried to kiss you and you ran away. Then you went on a date with another guy."

Lucy sputtered. "That was a _business_ date. Besides, how the hell would you know that? _"_

He gave her another dry look. "We're closer now than ever. After that scene, you were practically broadcasting it to all of your spirits."

Lucy's face flamed.

"Anyway," Loke continued. "If I were him, I'd be trying to mend my ego after that."

"What the hell was he thinking?" Lucy bemoaned. "You can't just—and after everything. Out of the blue." She knew she was rambling but couldn't help it. _Seriously_.

"Maybe it's not so out of the blue. Maybe he's been thinking about it since he left?" Loke supplied unhelpfully.

Lucy gave him a scathing glare that he weathered.

"Did you tell him?"

"Tell him _what_ , exactly?" Lucy asked. Her stomach jumped nervously, afraid of what Loke said next.

"About Gray."

Lucy looked away stubbornly. "Don't really see how it's relevant."

"Well," Loke said. "If you do decide to kiss him the next time he tries, I think maybe you should talk about it. I'm not an expert on the subject—" He very much was, given how many girls he'd swindled into giving him their time. "—But I know if the truth comes out in a way you haven't planned for, it'll be even messier."

"Why does it have to be messy in the first place?" Lucy griped. She knew _exactly_ why, though. She felt sick to her stomach all over again. _I wish_ … That she could turn back time, definitely. That she knew how to treat Juvia if they ever came back to Fairy Tail. That she knew if _Juvia_ knew or not. That she knew if it should matter to Natsu because what they had when he left… it was something, definitely, but it wasn't much.

More tears rolled down Lucy's face. _I don't want to do this anymore._

"Everything will be fine. And if it's not… Just say the word, Lucy, and I'll help you start again," Loke promised. "But until then, it's not something you can hide from."

 _It's our business,_ she thought.

Loke's shoulders tensed. Lucy, sensing the change, lifted her gaze and looked into his face. His lips pressed into a considering line, then all at once he relaxed.

"What is it?"

Before she even finished asking her question, Loke's form wavered and he disappeared. The umbrella he'd been holding dropped to the ground, landing in a particularly muddy puddle.

Lucy's adrenaline spiked. "Loke?"

He was nowhere near, retreated into the celestial world. _Why_? Her first thought was that he was forced out. She looked around the dark night, observing her surroundings. Rain drilled into her, obscuring her vision. She picked up the umbrella, holding it aloft again in hopes that it would help her see better. Runners of filthy water trailed off its black and white material. Thunder rumbled. When it faded, the sound of pounding footsteps came to her ears.

Lucy's throat tightened, and so did her fist. After her shitty altercation with that bum, she was ready for anything. But not for Natsu tearing around the corner, looking like he had somewhere important to be. The only reason why she recognized him at all was his soggy scarf and his messy cap of hair, though admittedly it was plastered to his head now and several shades darker. He almost ran right past her but at the very last moment pin wheeled his arms and came to an abrupt stop. Happy, who had been flying at shoulder height, crashed into him gracelessly and dropped heavily to the ground. His wings, already saturated, filled with blackened water.

"What the hell, Natsu?" Happy complained.

"Lucy! Fuck."

Lucy felt her muscles tremble and it wasn't just because of the cold. "Where _were_ you?"

"I should be asking _you_ the same thing," Natsu said sharply.

Happy picked himself up and wrung out his fur indignantly. "We went back to the motel, Lucy, and you weren't there. We got scared."

Natsu said in a calmer voice, "What are you doing out here?"

Lucy's throat felt small, all of her stress coming up to the surface. _I'm an adult. I won't cry. I won't._ She dug her nails into her palm until she left behind half moon crescents. "I was looking for _you_. I thought…"

"We tried to come back sooner," Natsu told her, stretching the truth just a little so that watery look would leave her face. "We got held up."

"By the guards," Lucy said. " _Why_? What the heck happened?"

While he considered how to relay his misadventure, Natsu looked around the street. It was totally desolate now. No one wanted to be outside in this torrent. Even his skin was chilling in the lashing rain. The feeling he'd been having that someone was watching them was gone; the only thing to make him uneasy any longer was the cold pulsing in his palm.

"Maybe we should go back to the motel," Happy suggested. "I'm soaked and _freezing_."

Lucy swiped away an errant tear that had escaped her ironclad hold. "Come here, you guys, come under the umbrella." Not that it was _much_ drier under there, the wind was going sideways now and trying to steal the umbrella from her hand.

Happy was the first to motivate and accept her offer. When he was at her feet, Lucy stooped and gathered him into her arm. He clambered up and nestled into her shoulder. He shivered worse than Lucy did, his fur matted to his body, making him look so much smaller. Natsu came in next, coming so close that their shoulders nudged together. For the first time in days Lucy didn't pull away, glad that he was there. His skin was warmer than hers. Feeling both greedy and selfish, she closed an extra bit of distance between them.

Natsu didn't put his arm around her, though he thought about it. The image of her ducking around him earlier stalling his movements. He _did_ eye her carefully, though, memorizing every line of her face, her gently sloping nose, her soft jaw, the delicate mould of her lips. He could see all of the ways she wasn't the dead girl when she was standing beside him.

He'd never forget the tang of iron in his mouth, the irrational fear that she was one of those girls, though. He wished that he could. Natsu didn't like feeling scared, and he'd had more than enough fear to over the last year to fill his cup for a lifetime.

* * *

The motel's floor was still damp. Still clutching Happy to her chest, Lucy went first to the bathroom and grabbed a rough towel, then she placed the cat on the counter and scrubbed it over his head, drying him though she was sure he was perfectly capable of doing it himself.

Natsu came in behind her and grabbed a towel of his own. He didn't stay in the bathroom, though. Lucy was almost glad after their close walk. Being near to him was both satisfying and painful. How could she simultaneously want to touch him and keep a distance?

"Did you really think we ditched you?" Happy asked. His fur was an inflated mane around his neck now, damp and puffed out because he was cold.

Lucy pressed her lips together. "No, Happy."

He knew she lied. "We won't, Lucy."

Natsu appeared in the doorway, a piece of cloth in his hand. "Here."

Lucy recognized the shirt he'd given her to wear to bed the night before. Her heart swelled. She tried to pop it like a balloon before she could get any crazy ideas. "Virgo…" She thought of the nighty the spirit left her, and the new way Natsu looked at her earlier, then reconsidered her words. This was the more modest option. She took it from him. "Thanks."

He pulled his lips to the side in a half smile. "We should talk, so get dry." He turned then and left the way he came. Happy hopped off the counter, towel dragging behind him, and followed him.

Lucy watched until he disappeared out of the doorframe, then she closed the door. There was one more towel hanging over the bathtub, the one she'd used earlier that day. She used it to scrub her soaking hair, then started peeling off her clothing. It went into the bathtub, landing there with a wet clap. She shivered even after she was dry, unable to help it.

In an attempt to get warm, she tugged Natsu's shirt over her head. The dark material brushed her thighs. Some of her chills eased. She looked down her cold-spotted body to her toes, the tips of which were painted crimson. The colour was startling against the paleness of her skin and the off-white tiles. The paint was chipped, her feet filthy. Looking up, she shook her hair back but left it loose, then wrung out her clothes and hung them everywhere she could manage, utilizing the bathtub to its full potential. When she was done she lifted her feet into the sink and washed them awkwardly. The water ran dark brown, then cleared. Finally ready, she dried her feet and came back into the main room. It was colder out there, the air conditioning on to combat the usual heat. There was no thermostat control in the room.

Natsu stood by the bed only in a pair of shorts. Lucy gave him a furtive look, skin crawling with false heat. She looked away just as soon as she was able and went straight to her makeshift bed, tearing the blankets up and wrapping them firmly around her body. It helped some, covering up like that. It felt like a physical barrier between them.

Natsu came and threw himself down on the couch opposite to her. There wasn't much space, not with his back against the armrest and his legs crossed so he could look at her fully. He wasn't ever shy or awkward. Lucy envied that. All she could do was look at him and remember the way he eyed her up earlier.

Then he opened his mouth and shattered any tormenting thoughts she had. "There were two girls killed tonight. We showed up just after the first one happened, and the other… she was killed while we were talking to that guard, Ackles."

Lucy's heart took a tumble. " _Where_?"

"By the old age home," Natsu said.

"That's _terrible_ ," Lucy said, so horrified she didn't even ask what he was doing out that way. "That must have been why Riley said he had to go. Gods. There's a killer on the loose in Magnolia. What if it was that thief I was supposed to catch?" She shook violently. Happy crawled up on the couch beside her and wedged himself between her left arm and the backrest. He tugged on some of the blankets and pulled them up around his chin.

Natsu looked at Happy jealously. Lucy wasn't wary of him at all. In fact, she seemed _glad_ that the cat was there, pushing into her side. _Maybe she'd be happy with you, too._ He scooted a little closer so her feet were touching his shins. She was icy. "If it was then you don't have to worry. They caught one guy and the other… he was shot."

Lucy clutched her elbows. "This is _Magnolia_. Stuff like this doesn't happen here."

Natsu didn't know how to respond to that. It happened _everywhere_.

Happy's eyes were drooping with tiredness when he reiterated, "We were really worried when we got back and you weren't here, Lucy."

"I was worried about you guys, too." Which brought them back around. She looked at Natsu. "The king waived your charges."

Natsu shrugged. "Yeah. He said he wanted my word to help if the kingdom ever needed it, which, whatever, I'd help anyway, but now we know we don't have to worry about hiding anymore. I can help you on that job now, if the thief is still on the loose."

Lucy ignored the pang of _I want to do it on my own to prove that I can._ It was selfish and silly, given that two people were dead. Besides, what the hell did she have to prove anyway? That she was good enough to be on Team Natsu? It wasn't a team anymore, so it didn't matter. "When I talked to Riley, he said you'd been gone for a long time. Where did you go?"

He huffed. "Back to the old age home."

" _Why_?"

Natsu met her eyes. _To get that girl out of my head._ He didn't tell her how the dead had rattled him. "Just to make sure the guards didn't miss anything. I don't think Ackles is great at his job." The jibe felt good, even if it was petty and uncalled for. He looked to see if she was pissed off by the dig or not. It didn't even look like she was listening, though, her eyes were trained on his hand. She reached out and took him by the wrist. Natsu's skin jumped under the contact. She was so cold.

"What happened?"

Natsu followed her gaze. His palm was angry and red where the thorn had stabbed. It was tender, too, even more so when Lucy brushed her fingers over the area. "Just a dumb thorn."

"It looks like it hurt."

"It's fine," he lied.

"Do you still have that first aid kit in your pack? I'll clean it for you."

Natsu almost told her not to worry, but he wanted an excuse for her to keep touching him. "Yeah."

Lucy rose, careful not to jar Happy who had taken to gentle snoring. The cat still grumbled when her body heat disappeared. He nestled deeper into the blankets, looking more comfortable than before. Lucy smiled at him fondly.

"Top pocket," Natsu told Lucy as she crossed to the bed. He was back to watching her shamelessly, though he told himself to _not._ He liked her too much in his shirt. Not only was he satisfied to see her in something of his, he was satisfied with the way it clung to her curves and rode up when she walked. It covered enough, but revealed enough, too. Enough to allow his attention to wander, for his thoughts to go all the places he'd been trying to keep them away from.

He rose and followed her, dropping himself down on the squealing bed while she searched through his army green pack. He could hear her heart beat faster when he was near. His own fought to respond while he fought to keep it even.

Finding the alcohol and a gauze bandage, Lucy knelt in front of him. Happy being just feet away helped mitigate some of Natsu's crazier fantasies, but having her close like this was like stepping into an inferno.

Lucy took his hand again and turned it palm up. "You should be more careful."

"Yeah," Natsu agreed.

It was obvious to Lucy he didn't really mean it. She kept her eyes on his palm, reluctant to look up and see how he was looking at her this time.

"Lucy," Natsu said.

Lucy dumped alcohol onto his palm and rubbed it around with a piece of cotton, hoping the pain would sidetrack him.

It didn't.

"About earlier—"

"Don't worry about it. You're fine, you didn't get hurt, you got a chance to clear things up with the king—"

"I mean before you went out."

She couldn't help but look at him now, her eyes drawn upwards by some magnetic force. His cheeks were bright. "Please, Natsu."

It took him a moment to realize that she wasn't asking him to continue, she was asking him to stop. "You didn't like it?" He listened to her heart speed. His palms pricked with sweat in anticipation of her answer.

Lucy stood on shaking legs and congratulated herself when she didn't fall. "Make sure you keep the wound clean. I'll help you change the bandage again tomorrow."

"We're just going to ignore it?"

Lucy remembered Loke's words and _knew_ he was right. She couldn't see what good it would do telling him about what happened, but she thought it was the right thing to do. She didn't know how. Too afraid. "We'll talk again, maybe in the morning, Natsu."

"We're here now." He didn't want to pretend like it didn't happen. "Just yes or no, did you like it?"

She started to turn. He caught her wrist in his good hand, keeping her there. "Natsu—"

He was getting anxious. "Yes or no, Lucy. It's a simple answer."

"Just because a person likes a thing doesn't mean they should be doing it," she said, evasive to the end. Her heart beat hard with even that admission. She tugged, trying to get away.

"So you did like it."

She looked like she was getting mad, red-faced and everything. Natsu didn't care. She didn't deny him, which was as good as a 'yes.' This time when she pulled away from him he let her go so abruptly she almost fell. Lucy recovered with an indignant huff and turned so she didn't have to look at him anymore, that way she wouldn't be tempted to say 'What the hell,' or 'Why now?' or 'Do you even know what you're asking me?'

"Good night, Natsu." Lucy flicked off the light beside the couch and curled into the cushions. Happy was still coiled down at the bottom. He snored lighter now, his breathing too even. Lucy knew he'd heard everything. She couldn't find it within herself to get mad, she was too on edge, tottering because she had _no idea_ what to do with this new Natsu. He'd always been forward and free with his thoughts, but he'd had _some_ reserve when it came to stuff like this. She used to think it was because he didn't care, but now she was questioning everything.

"G'night, Luce."

Natsu listened until Lucy's breathing altered and she walked into unconsciousness. It had taken a long, long time. Feeling untired himself, he thought maybe he'd just stay awake all night and all day, but after Lucy finally drifted off he let his eyes sag closed. He didn't see a dead girl behind his lids like he thought he might, but he did feel a cold hand grasp his and drag him down into disturbing dreams that felt more like memories.

* * *

In a hotel on the northern edge of Hargeon, Gray stepped out of the shower, jeans slung low on his waist. By the glow of the bedside lamp he found Juvia easily, she was already sprawled out on the bed, hair curling gently over the pillow, dark blue like rain swollen clouds, like the ocean bed, like sapphire, like cineraria's delicate petals.

Tonight she wore only her underthings. The bra was blacker than sin, the underwear small and shiny with silk. One of her hands rested against her middle, fingers splayed, leaf green nail polish catching the light, while the other was tossed over her head. She turned her head just slightly and looked at him from beneath her lashes. She was Persephone.

He shook the thought from his head. He didn't have to trick Juvia, she'd always loved him, more than she should, even when he didn't deserve it. _Especially_ when.

"Gray-sama."

He'd stopped asking her not to call him that long ago; it was fruitless. He came to rest beside the bed and anticipated her next move. Her fingers lifted and skated down the centerline of his body, finding the rivulets between his abdominal muscles. When she touched him her breath caught. He wondered if one day all of her admiration would be used up, if she'd stop looking at him like that. He wondered if he'd feel relieved like he used to think. Or just hollow.

She tucked her fingers into the hem of his pants and pulled him closer. Gray went, dropping his knee to the bed between her legs, planting his hands on either side of her shoulders. Her hair tickled his fingers. He bent and kissed her, remembering, unwillingly, the first time he did such a thing. It was with someone else's lip gloss still caught in the corner of his mouth. This time all he tasted was Juvia. He kept his eyes open to make sure she was all he saw, too. His chest panged. Every step he took closer to Magnolia made him feel more ill-at-ease. The mark his father gave him was colder, the magic feeling more volatile as it did when demons were nearby. He couldn't tell if it were actually the case, or if he was just… tense. Dreading.

Juvia knew he procrastinated. They could have pushed through and arrived at Magnolia today. It would have been late, but it would have meant an end to their travels. Instead they lingered in Hargeon too long, doing touristy things that Gray didn't care much about.

"You've been so far away," Juvia whispered into his ear. Her breath tickled, humid, her lips brushed his skin, soft.

Gray dropped his body so they were skin-to-skin. She was warm where he was always cold. She sucked in a breath like always, body breaking out in goosebumps when he laced his fingers in her hair. He kissed her to stop her from asking the next inevitable question: ' _What's wrong?'_ Everything would be better once he saw Lucy, gave her those fucking keys and got it over with. Then he would stop wondering how furious she'd be because he'd _know_. He'd stop worrying if she hated him because he'd _know._ He'd stop wondering if Juvia would stop loving him because he'd _know_.

"Juvia loves you, Gray-sama," she said, like she'd read his mind. "Always."

He tightened his fingers in her hair and arched his hips into her, determined to relish that while it was still true.


	8. Chapter 8

Her hair was rose brushed gold. Natsu buried his nose into it and breathed deeply. She smelled like sweet cherry, she smelled like home. He tightened his hold around her neck, holding her close. He was tired, and cranky.

"I have to make dinner, sweet boy," she whispered into his ear. "Let your brother take you now."

Hands closed on his ribs.

"Be careful with him."

"Yes, mother."

Natsu was taken away from her. A small sob built in his chest, upset by the loss of contact. Then he was being pulled in close again. He lifted his eyes and saw the boy who carried him. Without being told, he knew this was the one she called his brother. It was in the dark almond shaped eyes, in the straight nose. In the way he smelled so much like the other people Natsu loved.

"Lay him down, Zeref, I'll get him up again when it's time for dinner," mother said.

"Yes."

Zeref turned. Natsu, with his chin resting on his brother's shoulder, looked after his mother as he was carted away. He didn't feel scared while he held onto Zeref, he felt... comfortable.

Up a set of curling stairs, through a pale hallway, into a small room with light brick walls. A single bed came into view, one with dark sheets pulled up around one fluffed pillow adorned with a rag doll made from old clothes sewn together.

Zeref turned the blankets down and tucked Natsu in. When he was no more than a caterpillar in a cocoon, Zeref turned away again. Hot tears pressed into Natsu's eyes. He started crying, though he didn't understand why. Zeref turned back and sighed.

"I'm supposed to be studying, Natsu."

He kept crying.

It didn't take much convincing for Zeref to come back. He laid down beside Natsu and threw his arm over his chest. The weight was comfort. Natsu sniffled. Zeref tugged him in so his head was resting beneath his chin. "Sleep."

Satisfied, Natsu closed his eyes.

* * *

He was still caught up in a wave of comfort when he came awake. The ceiling above his head was different than the stars he'd been waking up to for the last year. The white stucco was stained, not just by water but by the outside light. The room was orange.

It took Natsu a full twenty seconds to realize that he wasn't being enveloped by another human, but Happy, who had come to sleep with him at some point in the night. The cat was sprawled out on his chest like he used to do when he was just small. Natsu laced his fingers behind his head and pulled himself up a few inches, using Happy to orient himself back in reality. _What a strange dream_. Zeref, his brother. The thought made him sick. _it was only a dream._ He unlinked his hands to rub his embarrassingly damp eyes and felt his palm pang, still sore from yesterday's abuse.

Blankets rushing met his ears. Gold caught his eye. Natsu focused on Lucy rising from the couch. She tugged his shirt back around her hips and shuffled to the washroom like a zombie. He watched her until he couldn't. The bathroom door closed.

 _Yes, or no?_

He didn't understand why she was making everything so hard, it really was simple, wasn't it?

 _Right?_ The uncertainty made him twitchy, an easy state to fall into after last night. He scrubbed his face, rubbing away last night's fear, last night's dead, last night's dream. Happy shuffled and grumbled. Natsu wriggled out from beneath the cat, too warm, and sat up straight on the edge of the bed. The toilet flushed, the water came on. Turned off. Then the door opened again and Lucy came out. Her hair was a messy mane around her cheeks, her face scrubbed clean. Without looking his way, she went to the door and grabbed a folded newspaper that had been pushed through the envelope box. Natsu was watching her so closely he didn't miss when her face pinched with distraught. He imagined what she was reading. The report on the attacks last night? Then distraught eased into disappointment. A flash of eagerness warred on her smooth face.

"Morning." His voice was set low, mindful of Happy still snoring.

Startled, Lucy whirled on him. Her hand went to her throat as if she were physically _holding in_ the scream surprise gave to her. She composed herself. Mostly. Her eyes dropped to his body, then flicked up to his face. She was finding somewhere else to look again just as fast. "It's evening, actually." She was equally quiet.

Natsu looked over his shoulder and saw that she was right, the fiery glow on the ceiling was left behind by the setting sun. He turned back to her and pointed to the paper. "Those murders in there?"

Lucy pulled her hair over her shoulder. "Yeah. And, apparently our thief struck again. He actually broke into the building last night and robbed people while the guards were busy out front with their investigation. I'm going to go there tonight. Maybe he's stupid enough to come back."

Natsu nearly fought with her, irrationally not wanting her anywhere near the place, the image of that girl sticking in his mind like bur to cloth. _One guy is dead, the other arrested. Besides, you'll be with her._ His heart's cramping eased. "When did you want to leave?"

Lucy's expression pinched. She looked miserable. "Soon."

"What is it?"

"Nothing."

She lied, he just didn't know why. "You don't want me to come with you?"

"It's not that." Not really, anyway.

"Then what?"

"It doesn't matter," she fibbed.

"Come on, Lucy, tell me," Natsu pushed.

Lucy looked toward the bed where Happy was curled.

"He's asleep," Natsu said, reading her expression correctly.

"Like he was last night?" Her cheeks got hot. She didn't understand why she brought it up. _'Did you like it_?'

"...We'll be quieter," Natsu whispered. "Tell me."

Lucy nipped her lip, torn between truthfulness and pride. Truth won. "Natsu..." She stared really hard over his shoulder. It made it easier to be brave. "I'm good enough to be on your team."

His expression turned quizzical. "What?"

"I'm a good mage," she maintained, talking fast for fear of falling quiet. "My magic has gotten really strong. I wasn't always the best before, but while you were gone things changed." She didn't let herself imagine a world where Fairy Tail was together again and people would request Lucy Heartfilia instead of her famous team, but she wouldn't feel shame. She worked _hard_. So what if it was to outrun her own depreciative demons? So what if the fear of being a disappointment made her rise in the morning? So what if it was Aquarius' sacrifice that really hammered the nail into the proverbial coffin and made her realize that she needed to be better?

"I know that," Natsu said.

"I can keep up with you." She thought of the stadium melting in Crocus and felt some of the wind leave her sails. _Stop thinking like that_.

Natsu's memories came up to find him: sitting on the floor beside Lucy while she lay on the loveseat. _'Did you leave because you didn't think I was good enough to keep up_?' "No one said that you couldn't."

She gave him a bland look that tore through him like a force of nature. "I'm not a dragon slayer."

"No," he agreed. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm not an amazing warrior like Erza. I can't call swords out of the air or wear armour like her."

"Of course not." He couldn't imagine Lucy swinging around swords. Terrifying.

"I'm not a devil slayer like Gray." She said his name weakly, wanting to keep him at a distance.

"Yeah, I _know_ ," Natsu said exasperatedly. "What about it?"

Lucy clenched and unclenched her fists at her sides, her stomach twirling. "After you left, I trained. I trained hard."

Natsu chewed his cheek. "I believe you." She had a frantic and fraught look in her eye that was wholly intimidating.

Lucy summoned all of her courage. "I—this job—it was _mine_ , Natsu. I found it. I was going to do it on my own, I was going to get us money so that we could keep going. It's my first mage job since Fairy Tail disbanded. Maybe it's stupid, but I was excited to prove to myself that I could do it." _To yourself, or to Natsu?_ She knew the truth even if she didn't want to admit it.

"Well, you don't have to prove anything to me, Lucy," Natsu said, finding and stabbing the heart of the matter in that effortless and unintentional way he had.

Lucy pressed her palms against her temples and breathed deeply. _He's right._ Of course he was. She _knew_ he was. It didn't help her bruised ego, though.

"Hey." He stood from the squealing bed, coming to her. He grabbed her wrists and pulled her hands down. Lucy's eyes were brighter than they usually were. She fought not to look at him, lifting her eyes to the ceiling and blinking furiously.

"Let me go."

He ignored her. "If you want… I'll just sit back and watch while you take down this guy." Her wrists felt small and fragile in his hand, her skin cool like it had been last night, soaked by the rain.

Her bottom lip quivered. "It's stupid. Just forget it."

He wanted to agree but knew better. "No. I can tell you've been getting stronger. Show me your new moves, Luce."

She dropped her eyes from the ceiling and peered at him through wet lashes. "You're just trying to make me feel better."

"No."

She knew he lied. She wavered, torn between accepting his offer and calling the whole thing off. _He's just entertaining you, but maybe give him a reason to believe you're better._

"Come on, Lucy." He squeezed her wrists tighter, willing her to say yes.

She huffed. "Fine. But you're not helping _at all_."

"Not even to sniff the guy out?" He knew what he'd smell at the old age home, blood. It made his stomach roil.

"No," Lucy said. "We're going to do it my way."

Natsu searched her eyes and saw iron there. This was important to her. "Alright."

"Do you promise?"

A promise was so binding. He did it anyway. "I promise." Lucy relaxed. Natsu released her wrists, chest tightening when she lifted her hands and swiped away tears. He sighed internally. _Catching this guy will make her feel better._ It always made _him_ feel better. "I'm going to shower, then we can get out of here."

Lucy turned so she couldn't see him looking at her like that anymore, overflowing with pity. "Okay."

She waited for the bathroom door to close, then thoroughly dried her face of tears. Her skin was hot with embarrassment; she did her best not to dwell on it. Going to the pile of clothes Virgo left behind, she found a black fitted dress adorned with silver toggle fastenings. She looked towards Happy, saw he was still apparently asleep, and hurried to shuck off Natsu's shirt. She grabbed a bra from the bottom of the pile at random, a silver one with underwire and black designs swirling over the silk, and found a pair of matching underwear. She heard Natsu shuffling around in the bathroom and hurried to yank the dress over her head. It fit well, fitting and flaring where it should. She found a pair of boots next, tall black leather ones, and yanked them on her feet. She wasn't sliding in sandals tonight.

Finished, she flopped back onto the couch and tried not to think about the way her stomach ached and cramped with hunger.

* * *

Happy flew overhead, wings as white as cloud against the nighttime sky. Natsu walked side-by-side with Lucy, stealing furtive glances when he thought it was safe. He couldn't stop. Which was annoying, to say the least. He kept looking for tears, hoping for smiles. He kept memorizing her features. There was a time when she didn't bother him like this. He could lay next to her and enjoy the way she smelled without wanting to touch her. He could look at her without lewdly examining every bit she deigned to show off, and those she didn't. He could breathe in her scent and _not_ feel like a mental case. He could try to kiss her and _not_ have it haunt his every subconscious thought. It didn't bother him back when Asuka suggested it and Lucy turned him down.

Things were changing.

Lucy sighed. "What is it?"

"What?" Natsu startled.

"Why are you staring at me?"

"Because," Happy chirruped from on high. Lucy knew she was going to hate whatever it was he said next.

"Be quiet—"

Happy spoke over her. "He _loves—"_

"Shut up, Happy," Natsu said with more bite in his voice then ever before.

The cat clammed up, looking hurt, but Natsu wasn't paying attention to him, he was looking at Lucy again. Lucy pulled up short when he grabbed her shoulder and turned her to face him.

"What are you _doing_?" Lucy hissed. Her heart throbbed, a bird in a small cage when he looked at her like that, serious and intense. His hand came out and touched the earring dangling in her ear lobe.

"Lucy…"

She wanted to pull away and yet she felt paralyzed. " _What_?"

Natsu dropped her cross shaped earring, the vague and unsettled feeling in his stomach fleeing. "Nothing."

Lucy jarred away from him, coming unglued. Her arms went around her middle. _Geeze_. "We're almost there." The old age home was still a block away, but it was close enough. "Maybe you should stay here while I set up."

Natsu straightened his shoulders, not able to totally push away the ominous feeling in his chest. "What am I supposed to do while—" Lucy's scathing look made his words wither. _You promised,_ he reminded himself. "I'll figure it out."

The blonde nodded, satisfied. "Good."

"You want to go up to one of the buildings, Natsu?" Happy asked. "That way we can watch?" Apparently he had a short memory for hurt feelings.

"Yeah," Natsu conceded. Up there he could make sure everything went off without a hitch.

"I hope this guy is dumb enough to strike again," Lucy muttered. She didn't wait to see which building Natsu and Happy chose. One foot in front of the other brought her closer to her destination. She breathed deeply of Magnolia's air. Aside from the smell of dust, she picked out flowers and faint baking. Water. The canal was nearby. Which meant her old apartment, too, one of the few buildings that remained standing.

In the distance lightning flashed. Lucy held in a groan. _No more rain._ It was a long way off, though. The street lamps pooled on the ground like droplets of false sunlight. She stayed in their glow where she could, thinking of the girls killed in Magnolia. Her keys got warm. Lucy knew what was coming and helped Loke step into the physical realm.

"You could have warned me before you disappeared last night."

The lion spirit sent a ghost of a smile her way. "Maybe."

Lucy looked at him covertly. His small smile was hindered a bit. "What are you thinking?"

"There's something strange in Magnolia."

"Like what?"

He pressed his lips together. "It feels… kind of like… I don't know. Something dark."

Blood rushed to Lucy's head. She pushed the fear down, not wanting to get psyched up and trigger happy before she even found this guy they were hunting. "Well, that's unhelpful."

"Sorry, Lucy. It's vague. Like an imprint. A memory or something. I can't pinpoint it." He looked over his shoulder and found Natsu crouching atop a huge apartment building that was, before Tartarus attacked, low income living. Now it was abandoned, half of it destroyed. He didn't say as much to Lucy, but he was glad the dragon slayer was nearby.

"Well," Lucy said, "The only thing I feel is annoyed. I want to catch this guy."

Loke pushed uneasiness aside. "What's your plan?"

She puffed out her cheeks. "I don't know. Debating on trying to lure him out, or going in and waiting." It was a hard decision, both routes had their ups and downs.

"Why don't we do both?" Loke suggested. "I'll go in; you stay out here?"

Lucy looked around the darkened city. To the north of the old age home the street lights had burned out. To the east was a small stretch of forest and beyond that, the canal. The west and south were streets and buildings. It was _logical_ to assume that the thief would come from there, which meant she only had two directions to watch.

"Yeah," she said. The word came out strong and confident. It wasn't how she felt, but if she _acted_ that way, then maybe it'd be true.

Loke looked at her again, saw the hardened resolve in her eye, and smiled, glad that some of her tenacity was back. "I'm glad we're doing this kind of stuff again." The words weren't meant to make her miserable, but there was no hiding the lament in his master's eye.

Lucy sighed. "I'm sorry, Loke." He was a battle spirit. He _wanted_ to fight. The only person he'd been able to tangle with over the last year was her, and that was only for training.

"Chin up, Lucy. Let's kick some ass."

 _He's right._ She tried on a smile. "Let's do it."

* * *

When she imagined catching the thief, there was a lot more action. But no. It was long, long hours of waiting. Nine o'clock bled into ten, bled into eleven, bled into twelve. The clock tower tolled. Lucy gave up on standing and slumped against the brick wall, hidden from view both by shadow and by a huge cedar shrub. Her feet hurt. She wondered after Loke. She wondered after Natsu. Knowing him, he was probably asleep on that building. Happy, too.

Reaching between her breasts she fingered the necklace her mother gave her when she was young, tracing the outline of the crimson heart. It was her favorite piece of jewellery, second only to her earrings.

"That's a beautiful necklace."

Lucy jumped, coming alert all at once. Her blood rushed with adrenaline, her eyes searched the night. She found her guest steps away. An old woman with short silver hair and deep lines on her face. Lucy felt a pang of urgency. The feeling lasted only a moment before her mind dulled and her senses became lethargic. _So tired._ The woman stepped towards her.

"Where did it come from?"

Lucy's tongue felt like lead. "Um…"

"Your necklace," the woman reminded. "Is it ruby?" She came closer again, reaching.

Lucy's fingers tightened on the charm. Her muscles just barely obeyed. _Something's wrong._ "Get away from me." Her voice was so sluggish.

She crouched instead, coming eye-to-eye with the blonde. "You shouldn't be awake any longer. Sleep."

Lucy blinked. And blinked. The second time, her eyes didn't want to open again. The back of her eyelids were dark. _You've felt this way before._

When, though? She breathed in the night, deep, deep breaths that filled her up to her core. Magnolia was ghost quiet, the only sound the odd frog croaking from the lily pads on the canal's waters.

Tension eased in her muscles.

She'd never been more comfortable. Fingers played at her throat.

Lucy's mind quieted, making way for Jellal.

 _Jellal?_

 _Not Jellal._

 _Mystogan._ A tumbler fell into place.

 _This… it's sleep magic._

A dangerous thing. The realization brought her awake by several degrees. Just as the woman stepped away from her, necklace in hand, Lucy found her keys. Loke's came to her hand like it was straining towards her. Magic welled in her chest, a golden light to tear away sleeping sickness. The spirit's power draped over her like a shroud, celestial clothing taking the place of her dress. Her chest burned with Loke's insignia. Sleep dissipated, power filled her body.

Her eyes came open, her hands cloaked in bright, bright magic just as the night ignited.

It wasn't her magic that made it light up, though.

Firelight and sweat were the only things she knew. And anger.

* * *

The man slung over Natsu's shoulders was wiry muscle and tendon. He was starving, wanting for a solid meal. Natsu tried not to feel sympathy for the face-changing thief. That was easy enough, he was otherwise occupied, weathering Lucy's dark, dark mood.

"I had it."

She'd dismissed Loke and shucked off the strange garb she'd somehow donned in a fashion that reminded him of Erza's requip. Back in her black dress once more, she was as furious as he'd ever seen her.

"I didn't know, Lucy." He'd said it again and again. She kept dwelling, though, thusly not allowing him to move on. The guard house was in sight, coming out of the night like a lighthouse on an empty ocean,

Lucy pushed her hair back from her face, annoyed with the gathering wind. The thunderstorm was not so distant now, approaching quickly on wind gusts that were bringing the air dipping towards freezing temperatures. _It's_ summer _,_ Lucy thought with disdain. Why the _hell_ was it so goddamn _cold_. "I wish you'd waited."

"I thought she— _he_ —" Natsu corrected, looking at the man's slack face over his shoulder, "—was going to attack you. What was I _supposed_ to do? Let it happen?"

 _Yes._

"He waited a long time, Lucy," Happy added. "I was really impressed."

Lucy took in a deep breath, disappointed with herself. _It's okay_. _It's fine. He was just…._

Natsu said, "I didn't want you to get hurt." He looked so sincere when he said it, how the fuck could she stay mad at that?

She brushed his arm, hoping the motion relayed what she thought. _Thank you, sorry, and fuck you._ "Let's just drop this guy off."

Defeated, Natsu fell into step beside her. The quiet between them was the most poisonous thing he'd ever felt. "Lucy, I'm—"

"Sorry. I got it. Just forget about it, Natsu, it was stupid anyway," Lucy said, summoning false cheer. When she wasn't so miffed she'd see what he did as sweet, but for now…

The walkway to the guards' barracks was as weed-choked as ever. Lucy was careful lifting her feet over the clumps of dandelion and chicory. At the door, she knocked.

"Here," Natsu said and dumped the man at the doorway.

"What are you doing?" Lucy asked.

"It was your job, take the credit," Natsu offered, which perhaps only stoked the fire burning in Lucy's belly. The dragon slayer missed her skin-melting look, grabbing Happy and ducking out of sight just as the door opened and the captain of the guard came into view.

"Yes?"

Lucy smoothed her features. "Hello, Sir. I believe I found your thief."

* * *

There was a stain on the ceiling. It kind of looked like a horse that had fallen to its knees. Lucy stared at it until her eyes were dry. Happy had gone to sleep long ago, curled into the motel's thin blankets. Natsu was in the washroom and had been for awhile. Lucy kept hearing the taps turn on and off, splashing. She imagined what he was thinking. She imagined what she was going to say.

 _Nothing._

 _Or sorry._

The door squealed when it opened. He left the lights on. Lucy thought to close her eyes and pretend to be asleep. Her body was slow in responding. Natsu poked his head out into the main room and saw her staring forlornly at the ceiling. He came to her, movements stiff, and sat down on the floor beside her like he had the first night in this room.

"Lucy." His voice was nearly drowned out by the pounding rain. It'd started thirty minutes ago and hadn't let up since. Thunder shook the ground outside.

Lucy turned her head to look at him. The bathroom light flickered, then steadied. Natsu's eyes had never looked so dark silhouetted against the light. Both hands found her wrist.

Natsu summoned the courage to say again, "I'm sorry." Apologizing sucked. Especially when it wasn't accepted.

Lucy lifted her hand, surprising herself when she laid it against his cheek. His skin was both warm and rough. Her thumb played over a small scar she found at the corner of his eye. It was new, from some adventure she didn't get to be apart of. She searched his eyes. "One day you're going to have to trust me to protect you."

"It's not that I don't, Lucy," Natsu said when he recovered from her strange words. "It's just that I saw an opening and thought… I couldn't just watch." He was closer now than before. Lucy didn't know if it was because he'd moved in that way, or because she'd unintentionally led him in. His half kiss came back to her, making her blood pound. "If we're a team, then we do stuff together."

His words percolated and pained her in a way that was surprising.

 _Let go._ She pushed him back, then stood up, her blanket falling away.

"Where are you going?" Natsu asked.

"Just for a walk through the halls," Lucy said.

"You want me to come with you?" Natsu offered, though he knew she didn't.

"I need to clear my head, Natsu," Lucy said. "I won't be long." The skirt of her dress was a tornado of cloth around her fast moving legs.

* * *

The wall at her back held her up. Lightning flashed faster than before, streaming through the windows and igniting the floor in a light so pure it hurt her eyes. The power flicked then went out, plunging her into darkness. Instead of startling, Lucy only felt resignation.

 _'If we're a team, then we do stuff together.'_ She wanted to ask, _"Is that what we are again?_ " She wanted to talk about convenience, necessity, want and habit, because it seemed like especially now, Natsu Dragneel never, ever needed anyone. _Maybe he's chasing what Fairy Tail used to be. Maybe one day he'll realize that it really is gone and he'll give this up and you'll go back to Crocus and he'll go back to… to wherever it was he went._

She pushed the thoughts away, banning them from gaining a foothold. The way Natsu cared was as genuine as it was humbling. No one had ever been so selfless where she was involved. Not her father, not her servants. _And mother?_ She barely remembered her, though she felt her absence every day.

The door down the hall opened and closed so quiet that Lucy almost didn't hear it. A pale figure came into view. She squinted. It was hard to see with the power out. The person came closer and closer.

Pale, smooth chest, bare. Dark hair. Smear of black stretching up his wrist. Black that she knew was colder than ice when touched. Her eyes tracked up without her permission and saw his defined jaw. There was a dark shadow around his chin; he needed to shave. He was just lifting a bottle of beer to his lips when he saw her. He choked, coming up short.

Lucy thought he'd run away.

He didn't.

"Lucy." His voice was quieter than a whisper, and slightly slurred, too.

She didn't know what to say. "Hey, Gray." It seemed an inadequate greeting after everything. Punching him would have been better. Screaming more satisfying. Crying more true to her heart.

So long passed in quiet that Lucy thought they'd just stare at each other. Then he said, "There's a balcony at the end of the hall."

She rose on quivering legs and followed.


	9. Chapter 9

The night was a riot of light and sound. The storm had reached a new level of viciousness. Stepping out onto the balcony was like stepping into a different world. The wind alone was enough to cleave Lucy in two. So far the rain was held back by the balcony's awning, but the material blew threateningly in the wind. All it would take was a slight change in wind direction and they'd be soaked. Gray stood just feet from her, the expression on his face absolutely torn. His fingers kept clenching and unclenching, his eyes meeting hers then darting away.

Afraid they'd just stay like that forever, Lucy asked, "When did you get into town?" That seemed like a nice, benign opener.

"Juvia and I are together now," Gray blurted.

Lucy chewed her bottom lip hard enough to hurt. So much for easing into the topic.

"Things are good for us." He looked ready to snap.

"...Good," Lucy said.

"So let's just..." He floundered, looking for a term to call _whateverthefuck_ it was that happened between them.

"Act like it didn't happen?" she suggested when he trailed off.

Gray nodded, gladly grasping onto her vagueness. His knuckles were white from clenching his beer bottle so hard. Lucy thought that would be it, but he went on. "Lucy... It was a shitty thing."

Somehow she'd crossed her arms over her chest, feeling vulnerable all over again. Stupid, raw. She didn't complain about him saying, _'I wouldn't leave you,'_ and then ditching in the middle of the night, though. She didn't talk about how she woke the next morning with the hugest hangover she'd ever had, feeling dirty and ashamed, used when she realized that he'd left, and not just her apartment, but _Magnolia_.

 _You used each other_ , she reminded herself. Aloud, she conceded, "We both messed up." _And Juvia_ …

That night came back and hit Lucy hard.

 _'Did you tell her?'_

 _'Not yet.'_

 _'She'll be hurt, but…'_

 _'But at least she'll know, right?'_

 _'Yeah.'_

He'd left with her anyway because he loved her, even if he was hurting. _You should have known_. Lucy swallowed the ball in her throat, wondering what it would be like to love someone that much.

"Juvia's asleep," Gray said.

Lucy filled in the blanks for him. "You want to act like this never happened, too?"

He flinched, obviously abashed. "Yeah."

Lucy's ego bruised more. _It's not like you loved each other._ No, but there was something to be said about a man totally wanting to disassociate with you after such a thing. She tugged up her pride from its place in the mud. "I don't want to hurt Juvia. Tomorrow morning, we'll meet each other out in the hall."

Gray nodded. "We'll be surprised to see each other."

"We'll pretend like all of this never happened."

It was just another thing to say _'It's fine_ ' to. This one at least felt mostly real. _Soon you'll figure out how to act towards each other_. _Soon you won't feel this knot of guilt. Soon you'll look at Juvia and not want to cry._

The future was heavy with promise. It had a lot to live up to.

Gray said, "Thanks, Lucy. And, it was good to see you again." The last was tacked on, nearly meaningless. He left her there surrounded by the storm. The wind shifted direction so the rain started to come into the balcony. Lucy's skin soaked immediately. The motel's balcony door closed.

Lucy stayed stationary for what felt like a long time. Her dress was saturated, her hair. She started shivering at some point. The air lightened with the appearance of a gate. Lucy took in a breath and prepared for the spirit she knew was coming for her.

Loke stepped into the storm. His glasses were gone. Tonight he carried no umbrella but held out his jacket. Lucy didn't take it so he wrapped it around her shoulders.

"That went better than expected, huh?"

Lucy's eyes were dry when she looked at him. "Yeah, I guess."

"Why are you still standing out here?"

She didn't know how to explain the chaos that was her head. "I just wanted some time to think, Loke."

"You want someone to bounce your thoughts off of?"

Lucy huffed. "I'm sure you know them all already." They were closer now than ever, and it seemed the more she obsessed about something, the more susceptible her spirits were to her internal ramblings.

"It's not as cleansing as speaking them aloud."

He had her there. Putting word to it was hard, though. "I don't like lying. Yet, I like hurting my friends even less." She met Loke's eye. "Is lying about it the right thing to do?" _Was_ it lying if she just didn't say anything?

Loke twisted his mouth to the right. "Dunno how I became your moral compass."

"Me neither," Lucy told him. "But you're all I have."

He actually looked hurt. He recovered. Loke always did. "I already told you what I thought should happen."

"You think I should tell Natsu." Which meant, inevitably, telling Juvia.

"Right."

"Even though we're not together?"

The look he gave her was downright plaintive. "If he hadn't left, where would you be now, Lucy? Still just friends?"

Lucy clenched her fingers tight in Loke's jacket. "Close, Gate of the Lion." Her voice was barely a whisper, but the magic worked anyway. He disappeared from view.

* * *

There was still no light when Gray re-entered his room slightly damp, wholly anxious. He slowed, searching the small dumpy place for Juvia's signature blue hair. He found her on the bed in her most favorite black nighty. Actually, it was _his_ favorite black nighty that she was kind enough to wear once in awhile. She claimed that the infrequency was because she thought he'd get too used to seeing her in it and it'd no longer be special. He wasn't sure if it was true or not, but it definitely made him appreciate her in it every single time.

 _This_ time when he looked at her, his heart did the same slow somersault it always did, but it wasn't because her breasts were nearly spilling out of the inky material. Or because so much of her legs were on display. It was because she fingered the silver keys he'd left on the dresser before he went for his ill-planned walk. His mouth went desert-dry.

Juvia lifted her eyes. She looked first at the mostly drunk bottle of beer in his hand. It was one of five and still his head was too loud. She looked next into his face, her expression so complicated there was no way he was able to read it all before her face cleared again.

"Gray-sama. You came back."

Gray was catapulted in time to a motel room very similar to this. His throat closed. "Of course I did, Juvia." Absolutely. "I just went for a walk."

She stood and came to him, keys in hand. Her free hand landed flat on his chest while the other went searching for his. Lucy's key's were icy cold against Gray's skin. Juvia curled his fingers around them when he made no move to do so himself.

"They should go back into your wallet."

Gray heard himself ask, "How do you know?"

"I see you, Gray-sama. You take them out and look them over mostly after we make love."

Gray searched for malice behind her clear dark eyes. There was none. He wanted to ask if she _knew_ about Lucy. His mouth wouldn't form the question.

Juvia said, "Put them back where they belong."

"Thank you." He took them on his own volition, though he'd never wanted to drop an object more in his life. Juvia stepped away from him so he could go through the motions, pulling his wallet out of his pocket, flipping to the last leather leaf and depositing the keys deep within the fold. Though they were out of sight they still felt heavy, his chest still tight, his father's magic unsettled. _It's Lucy._ He admonished the thought. _It's Magnolia._ He admonished _that,_ too. It was only a city. A town, really, especially now that it was a husk of itself. _It's demons._ It _had_ to be. There was no other reason for the coldness he felt deep in his bones and the growing headache behind his eyes. It'd been there since they stepped into town and had only gotten worse as the night went on. _Maybe it's all the beer._

Maybe.

"Gray-sama?" Juvia had hold of the straps of her nighty. Gray took his eyes away from the wallet to really focus on her. The straps inched down, sliding over her pearlescent skin. "Gray-sama, will you make love to Juvia?"

There was only a moment's hesitation, then he dropped the wallet and his beer to the floor. He didn't pay attention to the inch of warm fluid left in the bottom as it slopped out of the neck and wetted the carpet. Juvia didn't scold him, either, too in love with the way he looked at her, the intense way his eyes took her in, like he was breaking her down and seeing more than she wanted to show.

He came to her and helped her remove his most favorite article of clothing, more than willing to take the distraction she offered. His migraine even eased a little.

* * *

Natsu was pulling a loose thread on the corner of his blanket when the door opened again and Lucy stepped through. Even in the darkness he could see she was soaked and shivering for the second night in a row. She wore someone else's jacket. Not someone else's, he realized, but Loke's. The dragon slayer stood, on high alert.

"What happened?"

"Hm? Nothing," Lucy said so dully that Natsu relaxed just a fraction.

"Why are you soaked?"

She looked down, as if realizing for the first time she was saturated. "There's a balcony and it's raining. That's all."

"You went out in the storm?"

Lucy's throat bobbed. "I just wanted some fresh air."

He let it go to ask another senseless question in a much quieter voice, trying to be respectful of a sleeping Happy. "Is that Loke's coat?" He knew perfectly well that it was, the smell of the celestial realm was all over it.

"Yeah." Lucy shrugged it off and draped it on one of the kitchen chairs. Her skin was paler than normal and raised in goosebumps.

Natsu didn't let himself think about how she let Loke keep her company but not him. That was a sure way to feed a new jealous monster that he wasn't particularly fond of. "You should have brought him in, I haven't seen him in awhile." There was that brief moment where the spirit materialized earlier, but he'd been far away.

"Next time, maybe." Lucy clutched her arms around her middle and started looking for something to dry off with. On the beat-up table was a square of green towel. Natsu saw what she was eyeing and handed it to her. When she met his eyes he saw a whole library of emotions happening behind her contemplative expression. He expected a volley of words, yet she only said, "Thanks."

"You're welcome." Natsu watched her run the towel through her hair. The locks were dreaded now, braided up by the wind. She didn't brush her fingers through them like he expected her to, she left them exactly the way they were, or perhaps made them worse when she scrubbed the towel roughly through the ends, gathering up the excess water. When her hair was simply damp, she went to her bed and took up his shirt. Natsu had a nervous hot flash where he thought she'd strip off her dress there and change—she was acting so _strangely_ all the time now—but she took it into the washroom. The door closed. He couldn't tell if he was relieved or disappointed. Maybe the two were synonymous in that moment.

Long minutes passed. Natsu got tired of waiting for her and went to the bed, stretching out on the weary mattress. The bedsprings squealed. Happy, curled up at the foot, griped and turned further into the wall. Natsu locked his hands behind his head and stared at the water stained ceiling.

The washroom opened again and Lucy came out, hair still a knotty golden cloud. She had little trouble finding him, her eyes long ago adjusted to the power outage. She crossed the room, stepping over a pile of damp clothes Natsu dropped. She moved like a wraith girl, confident, like her feet didn't even touch the ground. Natsu expected her to stop at the loveseat. She didn't, not until her bare knees kissed the mattress. Natsu tilted his face up to look at her. It was difficult to make her out in the dark, but he thought her mouth was set in a kind of tense line that he'd never seen her wear before.

"Did you want the bed?" he offered, thinking that's what she was getting at.

Her breath left her lungs in a halting puff. Her knees came up on the mattress, then she laid down next to him. Natsu went completely still, trapped and unsure of what to do. Lucy's head rested on his bicep, her one arm half on his chest, the other tucked beneath her body. Her legs pressed against his. She still shivered, her body so cold. There was so little space on the single mattress, he felt _everything_.

"Lucy—"

"You're warm."

He clammed up, pleased, but off balance.

"We can still be a team, right?" Lucy asked.

"I think so," Natsu responded a millisecond later.

Her breath was hot against his neck. "I want to say I'm sorry, Natsu." She didn't say it like she was apologizing, though. It was more of a statement. "Things have been weird." Her fingers tracked on their own accord, making small swirls over his pectoral.

Natsu swallowed, his throat no wider than a reed. "They're going to go back to normal soon. People are going to start coming home, Lucy." She'd be surrounded by all of the people she loved and she'd be happier again.

"Natsu?"

He turned his face down to look at her. Her eyes were wide, guileless. "Yeah?"

"What if you didn't leave?"

He tried not to feel guilty. _I won't apologize. I won't. Not about this._ That he was steadfast on. "My dad died, Lucy—"

She shook her head. "That's not what I meant."

"…Then what?"

Lucy said, "I mean…" She was so nervous she felt like her heart was exploding. How could she let the question go unasked, though? "Would we have been the way we always were, or would you have still tried to kiss me?"

Natsu _knew_ he had a dumbstruck look on his face. He could do little to wipe it away, though. He was quiet for too long. _Say something_. "If you wanted me to."

"The other day… Did you think I wanted you to?"

The hits kept coming and he kept falling short. "Lucy—"

She drove the nail home. "Maybe you weren't wrong."

He floundered long enough for her to drop her gaze. Now he looked at the top of her blonde head and still didn't know what to say. Lucy's fingers swirled on his chest for a long time. Eventually they slowed. Her breaths evened out. Her eyes drooped closed.

Positive she was asleep, Natsu grabbed the blanket bunched at his side and brought it up over their bodies. He closed his eyes. They kept coming open. His heart was beating too hard. ' _Maybe you weren't wrong.'_ Sure, he'd _tried_ to kiss her, but it was different hearing her say maybe she _wanted_ to be kissed.

 _Go to sleep_.

His eyes slid closed. The cold in his palm that had been riding around all day and all night expanded. It hurt, but he was already on the cusp of dream; there was no going back.

* * *

The sky was an azure so pure it was near iridescent, the grass so green it was near violent. Natsu's hands were clumsy pulling at the tufts of dandelion gone to seed. The gray spores would lift into the air each time he touched them and were taken away by the wind. He watched them soar up, up, and then away. Some landed in Zeref's night-black hair. His brother smiled, his lips moving in a way that was carefree, not yet kissed by sadness or remorse.

"Did you make a wish?"

"That we'll live forever, you and me." Natsu's voice sounded strange to his ears. Small. Full of wonder and awe and the spark of adventure.

"Think of how we'd torment mother." Zeref laughed. "She has more than enough of you on a daily basis. That's why I get stuck babysitting."

Natsu felt his bottom lip pout out. "You don't have fun?"

Zeref still smiled. "I should be studying, Natsu. S-t-u-d-y-i-n-g."

"You're _always_ studying."

"Yeah, that's what happens when you go to university." Zeref said it like he'd explained this to his brother multiple times. "You're only four, Natsu, I wouldn't expect you to understand."

Natsu's mouth furled into a threatening pout. Zeref looked at him warily as if expecting an outburst. He wouldn't be wrong. To distract his brother, he said, "But I'm not studying now. What do you want to do? Anything; I'll make it so."

Natsu's bottom lip disappeared into his mouth. "Anything?"

"That's what I said."

"Mulberry pie."

Zeref's lip quirked again. "I don't think that's an activity, but sure, we can see if Valentina has made any."

The world shifted, the dream changed. The smell of pie was thick in the air. Dark mulberry stain was all over his fingers, the sugary berries all over his shirt. Mother never would have let him eat so savagely, but Mother wasn't there and Zeref… he wasn't paying Natsu any attention, his gaze caught on Valentina's form. She leaned back against the cool chimney and smiled with a plump mouth that looked as stained as Natsu's mulberry fingers.

Natsu ate his pie happily while he watched his brother do the same. It was fascinating, seeing him like this. It was like a switch being flipped. Zeref's smiles came brightly and frequently in this small hut belonging to the baker and his daughter. Coming here for the pies was definitely a treat, but seeing his brother's interaction with this girl was the real reason Natsu wanted to come. Zeref was happier here.

He finished his pie and searched for a second slice, planting his messy fingers on the scuffed floorboards and clambering clumsily to his feet.

Valentina's laugh was wind chime clear. "Natsu, you're getting pie _everywhere_. Father will come home and think something terrible has happened."

He didn't know what she meant by that. "More?"

She shook her head. "You've had enough, I think."

Natsu felt yet _another_ tantrum coming on. Zeref gave him a horrified look, as if saying _'Don't you dare.'_ The sob was coming anyway, though. It dried up when Valentina appeared with a damp red cloth in hand. She knelt in front of him, white skirts billowing. She smelled like roses and baking sugar. She was midnight haired and sky eyed. Her mouth was kind, her hands sure as she took the damp cloth and wiped Natsu's fingers clean, then his mouth. She pinched his cheek next. "You're going to be a handsome boy, Natsu, just like your brother."

He turned his face away shyly, crying forgotten. She stood. Natsu peaked under his lashes, watching Valentina go to Zeref, cloth brandished again.

"Messy eating must run in the family."

She dabbed his mouth. Zeref's cheeks were also red.

* * *

Levy McGarden wasn't a fighter, not by any stretch of the imagination. Her magic had always been good to her in that regard, keeping physical confrontations low. It wasn't until she was up against a magic-nullifying mage that she realized maybe other precautions needed to be taken.

Thus, Gajeel had agreed to train her with the blessing of the Magic Council.

When they'd first started days ago, Levy was terrible. She was terrible at making a fist (Gajeel promptly corrected her form, telling her in that not-so-polite way he had that she was going to 'break her stupid fingers'). She was terrible at throwing a punch (' _I know you don't have_ much _weight behind ya, Shrimp, but do better than that_ '). And she was terrible at reading his body language. Honestly, he barely flinched when he made his move. She'd spent a lot of time on a not-as-soft-as-it-could-be mat, staring up at the riveted ceiling while she wondered if she had a concussion.

He was relentless, barking orders at her every chance he got. Levy got better. A little, anyway. Not as good as she wanted to be, she discovered as she soared through the air for what felt like the tenth time that evening. This time when she fell, Gajeel came down with her, his hands fisted in the lapel of her council issue jacket. His knee landed firmly beside her, just barely digging into her ribs. It hurt, but it could have hurt a lot more. She winced. Gajeel loosened his hold. They both just panted for long seconds.

Levy gathered her words. "Sorry, Gajeel."

He looked like he was going to scold her. Then his expression smoothed. "The next time we try, you'll get it." It was a demand, not an encouragement. Man, he was a hardass sometimes.

In an attempt to justify her continual failure, Levy said, "You're a lot bigger than me."

"It won't always be a fair fight. Most of the people that go rogue aren't girl's like you, sweet tempered and soft, they're power crazed lunatics that won't stop until they have what they want. You in a coffin."

Levy blinked frustrated tears away so she didn't miss the way Gajeel's face softened and hated him for it. Who wanted pity?

"Ahem." A snooty if not bored and exasperated voice rang out through the training room. "I hope I'm not interrupting."

Levy closed her eyes and counted to three. There was only one person she knew who could master that particular cadence. Gajeel loosened his hold on her lapel and stood, then helped her up as well. By the time she was standing, Levy found a reserve of patience and a spare smile.

"Chairman."

Draculos Hyberion was a peculiar man, from his cross-shaped tattoo to his pointed ears and annoying little mustache. Levy treated him with respect every moment she could because he was a powerful mage and the new Chairman of the magic council.

That didn't make his humming and hawing and need for excellence any less aggravating, though.

"I have a mission for you two, and that Exceed of yours, Gajeel," Draculos said. He was a no-nonsense kind of man, cutting straight to the heart of matters without fail.

Gajeel straightened his collar, his sleeves. His hands still burned from where he'd grabbed Levy; the sensation was quickly fading with the addition of Chairman Draculos, though. "What's that?"

Levy winced, willing Gajeel to be more respectful. He was about as dense as a donkey's ass when it came to covert looks, though. He ignored hers completely. Whether or not that was purposeful was up for debate.

Draculos said, "There have been anomalous fluctuations in the flow of magic all throughout Fiore. The areas in which its passed have been completely drained of magic. It looks like someone's been harvesting it."

Gajeel's eyes sparked with interest. "Yeah?"

"Yes," he confirmed.

"Are we to arrest them?" Levy asked.

Draculos didn't hesitate. "The levels that are being collected rival that of those found in the Tower of Heaven eight years ago. No one gathers power of that magnitude for any benevolent purpose. Though alive would be preferable, I would accept dead, too."

Levy identified the feeling in her chest: fear.

Gajeel was steadfast. Always. "We're on it."

"There's something else you should know," Draculos said solemnly.

Levy clutched her elbows. "What is it?"

Draculos looked like he was having a very vocal internal debate. Finally, he admitted, "Some have theorized that the individual responsible has a goal in mind. While the drain sites have been popping up all over Fiore, they're trekking east, towards Magnolia. After the battle Fairy Tail had with Tartarus, there was a large deposit of magical energy left behind. It's in the earth. It's likely that's their target."

"Alright," Gajeel said. He turned to Levy.

Before he could get another word out, Draculos said, "There have been some… _reports_ that there are some members of your old guild gathering again in Magnolia."

Gajeel was the first to find his voice. "Why didn't you say something sooner?"

"To be frank, Gajeel, I didn't want to have to replace either of you," Draculos said. "The council needs stability now more than ever. How would it look if the head of my Magic Enforcement Unit resigned after such a short term?"

Gajeel's jaw bounced with annoyance. "I think that's my choice to make."

Draculos bowed his head in acceptance. "Which is why I chose to inform you myself. Am I to take this as your resignation, then? Do I need to find someone else for this mission?"

Gajeel turned to Levy. Levy nibbled her lip until it hurt, torn. "We'll do the mission. There's no sense in resigning over rumor."

Draculos nodded. "I expect a full report, then, just as soon as you discover who is creating that anomaly and why." He turned on his heel, cape swirling around his legs as dramatic as ever, and exited the training room. The door smacked closed.

Silence prevailed.

"You think it's a load of shit?" Gajeel asked finally.

Levy shook herself. "Is it bad that part of me hopes not?"

"Why would it be bad?"

She shrugged. "We do good work here, Gajeel. The Chairman is right; the council needs stability."

"I'll do whatever you want to do," he said. The words came out easy and offhanded. Levy saw them for what they were, an offering to stay together. Her heart swelled so it felt several sizes too large for her chest. She smiled, suddenly shy.

"Yeah?"

Gajeel, though he put on a good show, found something other than her eyes to look at. His loose hair mostly hid how red his neck had gotten. "Yeah. Let's go get Lily, get him up to speed."


	10. Chapter 10

For the second morning in a row, Natsu woke feeling groggy and confused. Zeref was in his head, though the dream was fading. "It can just stay that way," he muttered. There was no reason to think of Zeref as someone who enjoyed sweets and dreams and other's love. _You mean there's no reason to think of him as a real person._

Yeah. That.

Crunched up on the single mattress, his arm was asleep and his back was sore. Discomfort didn't even begin to describe his state. His feet had been spread wide to accommodate Happy, though the cat wasn't there now, and the right side of his body was too hot with Lucy curled into him.

 _Lucy_? Yeah. Her blonde hair was sticking to his facial stubble and was half in his mouth. It smelled like the motel's cheap strawberry shampoo. He'd never complain about it if it meant she was close, though it wasn't _her_ smell _._

Untucking his hands from behind his head was inviting a cascade of tingles to shoot through his fingers. Natsu nipped the inside of his lip and did his best to remain stationary while the nerves awoke. The more feeling he got in his hand the more he wished he could block it out. Where that thorn went in was _sore._ He lifted his head as much as he dared and saw that the skin of his palm was red and swollen. _Maybe it's infected._

Lucy shifted, slowly waking with him. Pain made way for a very different kind of feeling.

 _'Maybe you weren't wrong.'_

Natsu wondered if he'd dreamed that, too, but it was too fresh in his mind, not clouded by sleep. His stomach twisted with nerves. _Why are you nervous_? He wasn't _before_. She hadn't turned him down before, though, not for real. That thing with Asuka? He was mostly playing. Earlier... It was the real deal, which meant this, trying again, felt like taking more of a chance. He remembered the last girl he kissed. Lana. It had been sloppy and wet and uncoordinated. Laying on the grass staring up at the night sky with a belly full of boar and a myriad of people dancing and laughing all around, she'd thrown herself roughly down beside him, her white skirts getting grass stained, and grabbed his face between her hands. The next thing he knew, her mouth was crushed to his. It had been surprising, yes, though not entirely unpleasant. Not until he just decided to return the kiss and she rolled over and threw up on the grass beside him. Too much to drink. That had been the end of that. He'd left the next morning after barely saying goodbye.

That was fine anyway, she wasn't really the girl he was thinking about.

Feeling returned, Natsu allowed himself to bring his arm flat against Lucy's back. Her hair was so long now he barely had to reach up to touch it. It was still horribly tangled from last night. Lucy's fingers clenched in his shirt. Her breathing changed. Her lashes fluttered, kissing her cheeks. Sunshine streaming in through the window lit her up like a gilded girl. Her skin was honey, her hair polished gold, her lips rose-brushed. _Like Mother's hair._

The thought was distant and disjointed and threw Natsu for a wild loop. He could perfectly envision the rosy gold. He could even smell the oils she'd used. And yet he couldn't picture her face.

 _That's because you don't actually remember her. It was just that stupid dream._

Lucy grunting softly and sitting up brought Natsu back from a weird place. She looked down at him with sleepy eyes. The sleep cleared when she realized that she'd spent the whole night curled into him. What was meant to be a moment of comfort had unwittingly turned into a nighttime of shared closeness.

She didn't freak out like Natsu thought she would, accuse him of invading her privacy or call him a pervert. She let her face smooth and got out of bed. His shirt had ridden high on her thighs, exposing not only a healthy line of leg, but the swell of her behind and a pair of modest blue panties spotted with black polka dots. Modest or not, Natsu stared at them until Lucy realized that the shirt had caught in the elastic at the top. She brought it down with rough motions, then looked over her shoulder, checking to see if he'd seen. He wasn't fast enough in looking away. She didn't scold him _then_ either, though. There was a worry behind her eyes. Natsu didn't know how to ask her what was wrong. If it was waking up with him, or something else entirely.

He said the next best thing. "Morning." That was an acceptable and _safe_ way to greet someone.

"Morning." Lucy's voice was rougher than Natsu anticipated, hoarse with sleep. She went to the washroom, leaving Natsu alone for a few moments. He stared at the ceiling, hands in his hair.

Lucy returned, hair pulled up in a high ponytail, still messier than hell. Her bangs were fluffy and pushed to the side, covering most of her eye. Natsu's fingers itched in a very strange way when he saw it. He wanted to push the hair aside to fully look at her.

Lucy didn't go for clothes like Natsu thought she might. She came back to the bed and sat so they were hip to hip, her feet tucked up under the pillow. Natsu's heart beat fast. He forced it to calm. It didn't work, but the illusion was there, anyway.

"Happy's not here," Lucy said.

Natsu's calm evaporated. _'Maybe you weren't wrong.'_ He wondered if that meant she wanted to be kissed, like _then,_ in that very moment.

"Where do you think he went?"

For a three hour walk, he hoped. "Dunno."

"Aren't you worried about him?" Lucy asked.

"Nah, Happy can take care of himself." Natsu's heart beat harder.

"I guess so." Lucy dropped her eyes and plucked at the pill-ridden blanket covering her legs. She could feel Natsu's skin against hers. He was so hot, how was he not sweating?

Natsu cleared his throat. "…Sleep well?"

Lucy wormed her toes beneath the flat pillow and shrugged. "Well enough," she lied. While it had been an uncomfortable sleep, it was still one of the best she'd had in a long, long time. "You?"

"Pretty good," Natsu said. "Weird dreams, though."

Lucy looked relieved that there was something to talk about. "About?"

He locked his hands behind his head again and tipped his head back. It made his palm ache. "I don't know. Zeref."

"Zeref?" Lucy repeated, fully sidetracked now from her moment of bravery. So much for telling Natsu about Gray. She wasn't as put off as she thought. Relieved, more like.

"I guess," Natsu said. "It's weird, though. He's not a dick in my dream. He's not always crying, either. He's just…"

"Yeah?"

He couldn't put into words the way he felt about Zeref in his dream. _Family._ The sense of belonging. The comfort and protection he offered. _You've never needed protection from anyone_. That wasn't true. Igneel. Igneel was the only one he'd ever needed.

His eyes got hot suddenly, his throat small. He banished both feelings and replaced them with a crooked smile. "Nothing. It's stupid anyway. Just a dumb dream."

Lucy could tell he was bothered, despite his cheer. He sat up, though, and scattered her thoughts. His fingers found hers. Lucy dropped her gaze and examined their hands twisted together. His nails were short, surprisingly neatly cut. One of them was bruised black. His hands were rough and scar-ridden, his right red and swollen in the center of his palm from the abuse he'd given it the other night.

"You need to keep that clean. It looks sore," Lucy said, breaking through whatever it was Natsu was gearing himself up to do. _You know_. She'd as good as invited him to kiss her last night. And _why_? To complicate things for herself, probably.

"Will you help me again?" He just wanted an excuse for her to keep touching him. Maybe this time she wouldn't storm off and go to bed.

"Yeah." She started to rise. Voices in the hall made her freeze.

Happy was coming back. And he wasn't alone.

Natsu realized it the same moment she did. Lightning quick, he was tugged through a myriad of emotions, excitement and disdain the two most dominant. He didn't want to be interrupted, but how could he complain?

Lucy on the other hand looked downright panicked. Like if she were able, she'd slip straight through the mattress, through the floor and disappear forever. She clutched at her hip for something that wasn't there. Her keys, Natsu realized, though why she'd need them was beyond him.

The door popped open, Happy waltzed in, bringing with him Gray Fullbuster and Juvia Lockser.

"Hey, Natsu, lookit who I found!" Happy chirped. "They were getting breakfast from the cart down the road just like me."

Natsu realized that Happy held a paper bag full of something greasy. It smelled like deep fried heaven. His stomach grumbled loudly. "Awesome." He got out of bed and crossed the room, shamelessly gathering Gray and Juvia simultaneously into a fast, yet bone-crushing hug. "Where the hell have you been, man? We've been here for _days._ "

Juvia grunted and flushed, awkwardly patting Natsu on the back. Gray was stiffer than usual, not returning the hug before the dragon slayer released him. His stomach was in knots and his skin was on fire and not just because beside him, Juvia was tight-lipped and tense, her eyes on Lucy over Natsu's shoulder. His father's mark was twanging. Sweat beaded on his brow. Suddenly five beers last night felt like too much, though it had never bothered him before. He breathed deeply and swallowed.

Natsu was still waiting for a response. It was Juvia that answered. "We've been travelling all around. Doing freelance work. I saw the article after you defaced the King's castle."

Natsu chuckled and looked over his shoulder. "See, Lucy? I knew it'd work."

Lucy laughed. It sounded strangled.

Juvia finally looked away from the blonde. "And you, Natsu?"

Natsu shrugged. "Training, mostly. I'll tell you about it over breakfast. Come on, there was a park with a few picnic tables just down the road. I saw it the other night when I was looking for Lucy."

Lucy hummed her agreement, not really listening because her skin was itching. This was _not_ the way to act surprised, she _knew_ , but she couldn't escape the look Juvia gave her. _She knows_. She had to. There was _no way_ she could not when she was wearing an expression like that.

Natsu came back and tugged her out of bed. "Get dressed."

Lucy yanked out of his grasp, more than ever aware of her garb. It shouldn't have been as awkward as it was. Maybe it was climbing out of a bed she'd obviously been sharing with Natsu. Maybe it was her state of undress, even though everything was covered. Her cheeks were hotter than they had any right to be. She shuffled to her pile of clothes and grabbed things at random. Her keys last.

* * *

Locked in the bathroom, Lucy breathed deeply, trying to calm herself. She dressed in a pair of black shorts and a vibrant pink tank, then yanked on a pair of army-style boots. She washed her face next, and then finally tugged a brush through her hair. It took a long time, and not just because she was procrastinating.

Ten minutes into her time-burning, the air lightened and Loke stepped through a gate. Lucy looked at him blandly through the mirror.

"Are you always just going to show up now?" Her voice was a whisper so no one outside would hear her.

"You were the one looking for my key earlier. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I wasn't really looking."

He raised a brow.

Lucy breathed a huge sigh. "I'm fine."

"You almost told him."

"And then I didn't."

"But you thought about it. You were close. Next time."

Just imagining gearing herself up for it made her want to hurl. "Listen, this isn't a good time to have this conversation; everyone is waiting for me out there."

"Yeah," Loke said, "You say that, yet you're in here making them wait."

Lucy quieted.

"You want me to come out with you?"

Like she needed someone to hold her hand. The thought was so tempting, and that's why she dismissed it. "It's alright, Loke."

"Lucy! Our food's getting cold." Happy's voice came through the door, making Lucy both jump and squeak.

She took in a stabilizing breath. "I'll meet you guys in the park, okay? I know which one Natsu meant."

"Are you sure?" Happy asked.

Lucy pushed her unruly bangs back from her face. A look in the mirror revealed a girl with pale skin and wide doe eyes. She looked scared straight. _Pathetic._ "Yeah, Happy. I'll be there soon."

There was muttering, then the outer door opened and closed. The room was silent.

"What's wrong, Lucy?" Loke asked. "Why are you still in here?"

Still unable to raise her voice, Lucy whispered, "Did you see the way Juvia looked at me? And Gray, he wouldn't even meet my eye."

"I think Juvia looked at you like she always looks at you."

"She was glaring at me."

"She's always sort of glaring at you. Nothing's changed; it's all in your head. As for Gray, that was a two-way street," Loke said. "You haven't figured out a way to treat each other. It'll take time."

 _Time._ Of course. _It'll get better_ , she consoled herself.

"Look, I know you feel shitty," Loke said. "But Juvia is a good person. When you figure out how to tell her, she may not forgive you immediately, but she'll figure out how. Everyone makes mistakes."

"This was a _huge_ mistake," Lucy muttered.

"Yeah. It was, but you're human. And it wasn't just yours. Remember that. You don't have to bear the burden of guilt all on your own. You had help that night. Right?"

She remembered kissing his neck and pulling back, feeling shame. The apology. And then his mouth on hers.

Loke straightened his suit jacket and pushed back his messy locks while Lucy squirmed with discomfort. "You're sure you don't want me to come out with you?"

Lucy made herself stop incessantly wringing her hands. "That's alright, Loke. Thanks, though."

"I'll stop by later then," Loke said. "It'll be good to see Gray and Natsu again. And relax, Lucy. Everything's going to be fine." He faded from view.

 _Everything will be fine._ She rolled her shoulders back and gathered courage. When she opened the door and came out into the main room, she felt all of that courage wither. Natsu stood beside the off-white coloured fridge, waiting for her.

"Hey." He'd changed, put on a pair of dark green cargo pants and a black shirt. His scarf was around his neck, as always. His hands were stuffed deep into the pockets of his pants.

Lucy cleared her throat. "Hey."

"Was that Loke I heard?"

Lucy laughed nervously. "You have freaky hearing."

"How come he didn't stay?" What he didn't ask was, _'how come he was here_?'

Lucy shrugged and lied. "He had some place to be. Just stopped by to chat."

He half smiled. Lucy could tell he was _burning_ to ask about what. He didn't, though she wished he had when he threw his next question at her. "What's going on with you and Gray?" Natsu never minced his words.

"What?" Lucy wheezed.

"Are you guys mad at each other or something? You didn't even say hi."

"We didn't?" she asked weakly.

Natsu shook his head.

"Guess you guys were talking and I just forgot," Lucy responded. It was the wateriest lie she'd ever told.

And Natsu believed her. Apparently while his hearing was good, it wasn't _that_ good.

"Well, come on, you'll have a chance. They're waiting for us at the park." He took her hand. His skin was cold for the first time ever. Lucy was too busy trapped in her own head to really notice, though.

* * *

Beneath a huge bur oak, Gray and Juvia sat shoulder to shoulder on a long wooden picnic bench with Happy sitting opposite. Coming around the corner and seeing them there, Lucy tried to look at Juvia in an objective light. She was glowing looking at Gray, with pink cheeks and cerulean locks dancing in the warm summer breeze. _Does that look like a girl who knows she's been betrayed?_ Lucy couldn't tell. She watched Juvia tear off a piece of fluffed and sugared batter and drop it on her tongue. Gray eyed her like she was the only thing to look at, until he caught sight of Lucy and Natsu approaching. His good cheer, the snippet of relaxation and happiness, dried up like water in the desert. Lucy's heart ached for a _new_ reason.

Natsu didn't notice. "Yo."

"Thanks for showing up," Happy said when he noticed them. "Gray and Juvia are gross, always kissing."

Lucy waited for Juvia's happy glow. She didn't have long. Juvia loved Gray just as much now as she ever did, though it seemed like maybe she was a little less erratic. She didn't gush so much; she didn't stare as hard; she didn't demand Gray's attention. Probably because she had it.

 _And if you open your big mouth, maybe you'll ruin that._ There were a million ways Lucy Heartfilia could justify taking her secret to her grave.

Natsu dropped himself down onto the picnic table and snatched the paper bag from in front of Happy. Inside were two pieces of pastry much like Juvia's. He handed one to Lucy and kept the other for himself. He stuffed a huge chunk into his mouth and said around the food, "Thanks for getting this, Happy. I owe you bigtime."

"Yeah, you do," Happy said. "Pushing me off the bed so you and Lucy could sleep together—"

Lucy didn't hear the rest of the cat's words; her ears were roaring too much. _Is that what you do now, you just sleep with boys?_ It wasn't true, but her internal monolog was vicious. She looked up from beneath her lashes and sure enough, Gray was watching her like a hawk. She busied herself by cramming her mouth with food.

Conversation continued without her attention.

Until her name was called.

"And you, Lucy?" Juvia's voice was like a punch in the throat.

Lucy choked on her food, sputtering. She turned her head to the side and coughed loudly, dislodging the piece of pastry.

Natsu clapped her on the back hard. "Geeze."

Juvia was still looking at her expectantly.

Lucy swallowed and cleared her throat. It itched. "What?"

"What were you doing for the last year?" Juvia reiterated.

Lucy summoned the power of speech. "I worked for Sorcerer Weekly."

"Doing?"

Lucy fidgeted under Juvia's undivided attention. "Um, I was a model first, and then I was a reporter."

"No mage work?"

She didn't ask to be mean, Lucy knew, it didn't stop her pride from stinging, though. "No." The admission was barely a wisp coming out of her mouth. Her cheeks were hot; Aquarius was in the back of her mind.

Juvia didn't ask why, and neither did Gray.

"What about you guys? Did you do a ton of training?" Natsu asked. "What about that devil slayer's mark, Gray?"

Gray started talking. Natsu listened while he and Happy stuffed their faces greedily. Lucy looked away from them both and saw something else that made her want to shrivel.

They were being approached by a guard.

And not just any guard. But Riley Ackles.

With every step he took Lucy tallied the lies she'd told him. _I don't belong to a guild. I don't know this criminal. I'm travelling by myself._

She willed him to keep on walking, but he had eyes for Natsu. It didn't take long for him to see her, though. When they locked eyes there were countless things that went on behind Riley's plastered on indifferent expression. He surveyed her close proximity to Natsu. Lucy could practically _see_ the questions building. She gnawed on her tongue until she wasn't certain if she was going to draw blood or not.

She smiled and greeted him when he was close enough and she was _absolutely positive_ he wasn't going to keep on walking. "Hi, Riley."

"Lucy." The conversation, which had been going strong between Gray, Natsu and Juvia, died around the table. Riley shoved his hands into the pockets of his dark slacks. His military issue jacket looked stiflingly hot. He barely sweated.

"…Working today?" Lucy posed.

Riley gave a minuscule nod. "Natsu, how fortunate I saw you as I was making my rounds. We need to have a discussion." The way he said Natsu's name was practically a sneer.

Natsu brushed off his sugar-dusted fingers. "'Bout what?"

Riley looked around the table. "In private would be best. I have a message from the King."

"These guys are cool," Natsu said. "Whatever you want to say can be said around them."

Riley looked uncomfortable. "It's not the kind of thing regular citizens should be privy to."

"They're all part of Fairy Tail," Natsu said. "So just say what you gotta say."

"Fairy Tail isn't a thing anymore."

Natsu pulled up his T-shirt and slapped his bicep where his guild mark still stained his skin. "I say it is."

Riley looked at Lucy again and snorted air from his nose. "I don't really have time for this. Very well." He looked around. There was no one nearby so he dropped his voice and said plainly, "There was another killing. Just like the one the other night. The King thinks _you_ should take up the investigation." He said it like he wasn't in agreement.

Blonde hair. Dead eyes. Lips so swollen and loose they looked like pink-stained maggots. Lucy. Not Lucy. The bottom fell out of Natsu's stomach. "What?"

Riley nodded.

"I thought one guy was shot and the other was caught," Natsu said.

"There must be more than what we thought." He looked at Lucy. "And it looks like he's got a type, Lucy. All of the victims have been young blonde ladies. There's nothing that really ties them together, other than that and they're all from out of town, no sports or clubs or community activities. They didn't go to school together or even grow up in the same neighborhood. They're just pretty girls with blonde hair. It's like the killer is looking for someone. You need to be careful."

Wild chills took over Lucy. She clutched her elbows.

"Any clues?" Natsu asked. His voice was rougher than he'd planned. He blocked out the feeling in his chest, unwilling to name it.

Riley said, "This was the only thing left at the scene of the crime." He pulled out a scarlet heart earring and set it down on the picnic table. Natsu sucked on his lip, remembering the earring he'd picked up the other night. It was an exact match.

Lucy said, "Where did you get that?"

"I told you, I found it," Riley said. "It was half buried in the dirt beside the girl. Couldn't find the other one, though."

Lucy made a small strangled noise. Natsu took his eyes away from the earring to take her in. She looked green, like she was going to throw up.

She rose from the picnic bench on unsteady legs.

"Lucy?" Happy asked.

"I want to go back to the motel."

"Just hang on a sec." Natsu looked to Riley, doing his best to appear unshaken. "I'll start looking for this guy tonight. Where was the last killing?"

"By the peer."

Lucy shifted her weight from foot to foot, feeling like she was going to burst with nervous energy. Just looking over her shoulder she could see the slumping roof of their motel, the balcony she and Gray met on. It wasn't so far away, and she had to dispel the unease she felt _somehow._ She took the first step towards it. Gray, looking completely at war with himself, stood.

"Lucy, hang on."

Though his voice attempted to pin her in place, she couldn't stop, especially after she took that first step. Gray must have decided that he didn't want to be alone with her because he sat right back down, rigid as a stick. Happy glared at him, as if to say, ' _What the hell.'_ It rolled off him like water. The cat got up instead and flew to Lucy's side.

"Wait up."

Natsu kept Lucy in his periphery. "I'm on it. I'll let you know if we find anything." He turned from Riley without waiting for a response and jogged to catch up to Lucy. The blonde was on a mission, halfway back to the motel already. "Hey, did you not just hear what he said?"

"Yeah," Lucy said.

"Then why the hell are you going off by yourself? You fit the description of those girls—"

"Because, Natsu, those might be my earrings," Lucy said.

* * *

"My butt hurts," Wendy griped.

Erza squeezed her reins between sweaty fingers and looked over her shoulder at the blue haired girl. A year before Wendy had been nervous of horses, but now she lay flat over Queen Moro's back and stared at the clouds. It was a humid day, hotter than hell, and uncomfortable didn't even begin to capture how Erza was feeling. Everything chafed. Her armpits, her thighs, her knee pits in her cursed leather boots. She nearly swapped out her armour for something cooler, but she wanted to lead by example, and if she gave in to discomfort, then Wendy would think that it was okay.

Unacceptable.

"You could walk the rest of the way."

Wendy rolled her head over on her horse's ass and looked at Erza miserably. "We still have a day, minimum."

"Yep," Erza said with false cheer. "Almost there."

Wendy sighed.

There was quiet for a few minutes after that then Wendy asked, "When did you want to stop for lunch?"

"At lunch time, I suppose."

"Wendy, why are you being so insufferable?" Carla said.

Wendy tipped her head back so she could see her friend flying overhead. "It's almost lunch time."

Carla harrumphed. Erza checked the sky. She couldn't tell.

"We'll go for another few kilometers, Wendy, then we'll take a break. I want Raven's Canyon far behind us before we stop tonight."

"Do you think the tales about it are true?" Wendy asked.

"What tales are those?" Carla queried.

"They say restless spirits roam its belly," Wendy said in a hushed voice, unsure if she was trying to freak Carla out or if she was just scared herself. _The latter, for sure._ She'd hardened her skin quite a bit over the last year. Travelling with Erza Scarlet would do that to a person, but the thought of ghosts still made her skin crawl. Especially malevolent ones.

"I don't believe in ghosts," Erza said with assurance, leaving no room for doubt.

Wendy knew for a fact they existed. "But—"

"If we come across an enemy we'll do the same thing we always do, Wendy, ghost or not," Erza said shortly. She paused, as if waiting for Wendy to fill in the blanks. When she didn't, Erza prodded. "Which _is_?"

"We cut them down," Wendy mimicked one of her _countless_ lessons with Erza. Travelling with the contrary swordswoman gave new meaning to trigger-happy.

" _Exactly_ ," Erza praised. "You're going to be quite the warrior one day." She beamed, infinitely pleased with herself, and started humming.

That seemed to pacify the young dragon slayer, at least for awhile.

"Erza?"

"Yes?" Erza found Wendy again. She still hasn't sat up, fully depending on Queen Moro to follow Erza's Heart Shadow through the paths.

"Have you ever kissed someone?"

Erza's heart did a strange puttering beat. "Kissed someone?"

"Like, on the mouth. Like, like people do whenever they're in love." She _knew_ Erza had, she'd accidently spied Jellal doing that very thing to the redhead _months_ ago in one of the alleys between their hotel room and a restaurant, but she wanted to hear it from Erza's mouth. Maybe after an affirmation she'd get the guts to ask if she'd ever kissed another _girl._

"Wendy, I don't think that's any of your business," Carla scolded.

Finally recovered, Erza said, "It's okay, Carla, she's just curious. Yes, Wendy. I have."

Carla clammed up.

"How did you know that it wasn't something friendly?" Wendy inquired. Her cheeks were the brightest things Erza had ever seen.

"...Um..." Erza floundered, sure that there were other, better equipped people to have this conversation. "You just know."

Wendy went quiet again. Erza watched her lift her hand and touch her lip, a faraway expression on her face. She'd been spaced out for days, dreamy, then teary eyed, cranky, then happier than Erza had seen her in months and months. She was difficult to keep up with.

"Did some boy kiss you?" Erza prodded.

Wendy dropped her hand away, her face a mask once more. "No." The word was so short and final that Erza let it go.

* * *

Sharp knocking dragged Laxus Dreyar out of a heavy sleep. He blinked blearily at the vaulted ceiling overhead, trying to make his brain kick into gear. There was a body thrown over his. Or…

Two.

Definitely.

One with a cap of short cherry hair, the other lemon yellow. Dyed, both, certainly.

The knocking kept up.

"Get lost," Laxus said. His mouth felt like it was full of cotton balls.

"Laxus." That was Bickslow. "We need to talk."

"Sleeping," Laxus said. The two girls were rousing. The lemon haired one sat up and blinked dopily. Last night's makeup was running, one of her fake eyelashes was threatening to fall off. She wasn't nearly so scary when he took her to bed. Honest.

"Mm… It's pretty important," Bickslow explained.

Laxus stared at the door, willing Bickslow to go away. His head. It was pounding.

Obviously he couldn't control minds because Bickslow grabbed the handle and opened the door. He wasn't wearing his helmet. In fact, he'd barely gotten dressed, appearing only in a pair of black cargo shorts slung low on his hips and no shirt.

"What the fuck?" Laxus cussed. The cherry haired girl was rising now, too. She wasn't wearing any clothes and wasn't too shy about it either, propping herself up on her elbow and blinking at Bickslow. Bickslow glanced her over as if unable to help himself, and smirked in his typical fashion.

Then he sobered.

"Listen, the Strausses just showed up at Pegasus—"

"Strausses?" Laxus repeated.

"Like, Elfman, Mirajane and Lisanna," Bickslow said, as if Laxus could forget.

"Who's that?" asked the girl with the lemon hair. Laxus struggled for her name and couldn't remember so he ignored her.

"The fuck are they doing here?"

"Looking for you," Bickslow said. "I don't know. Freed found them first. Ever's with them now and I'm here getting you because they wanted to talk to you—"

A familiar head of silver hair appeared at Bickslow's left. Mirajane ducked under his arm and peered into Laxus' room. She took in the girls, the beer cans and the cigarette butts crushed into gilded ashtrays and raised a pale brow.

"Hey, Laxus."

Laxus shook his head, annoyed. "Mira."

"And Lisanna." Lisanna wormed in between Mira and the wall. Her cheeks went bright red when she made sense of the bed. " _Oh_."

Bickslow laughed.

"Get out," Laxus said with finality. "All of you."

"We need to talk," Mira said. "We travelled days to get here—"

"You want to come in while I get dressed, Mira, sit down on the bed and watch, or are you going to give me a minute?" Laxus challenged, his hangover making him brusque. "Makes no difference to me."

Mira finally blushed. She grabbed Lisanna's hand without a word and turned away.

"Coffee?" Bickslow asked.

"Out," Laxus said.

The door closed.

"Who was that?" asked Cherry hair.

"Better question," Laxus said, "Is who are you?"

"Yasmin, we met last night at Lucky Fingers—"

"Yeah, listen," Laxus cut in, knowing he was being a dick but not really caring. "I got some stuff to take care of." Apparently. _What if it's about Gramps?_ His heart tried to grind to a dead stop. He pushed the thought away.

"Well, maybe we could hang out later tonight," Lemon girl said.

Laxus smiled falsely and lied. "Yeah, maybe."

Pacified, they both crawled out and stumbled into their clothes. Laxus watched until they yanked on their high heels. They twiddled their fingers like he hadn't been the biggest jackass in the world to them then slipped out into the halls of Blue Pegasus. They were the latest of a long train of girls. Just because he was bored. Just because he needed something to distract himself from his missing grandfather. Just because.

He rose and dressed. The room wobbled. His guts were near ironclad now, his head, not so much.

Another knock came on the door. Annoyed, Laxus tore it back and looked at Bickslow again. He'd found a shirt. _"What_?"

"Just making sure you were coming," Bickslow said with a grin. "I was getting sick of Mira's skin-crawling glares. They're all for you, buddy, and I think you should take them. On the chin. Like a real man."

"Let me guess, you were talking to Elfman?" Laxus drawled.

"You got it." He held out three aspirin and a bottle of water. Bless him. Laxus swigged them all back then started down the hall. Bickslow closed his door and jogged to catch up.

Laxus asked, "It's not Gramps, is it?"

Bickslow's grin fell away. "Dunno. They haven't said."

Well, it wasn't super comforting, but it wasn't a nail in the coffin either. Laxus went right and took a set of stairs two at a time. His steps echoed loudly off the silver and gold walls that made up Blue Pegasus.

"They're in meeting room B," Bickslow said.

On the main level, Laxus went left through a small bar devoid of another living soul. The smell of alcohol clung to his nose and made his stomach turn. He couldn't get out of there fast enough. On the other side of the door was a long hallway with several rooms leading off either side. Meeting room B was at the very end on the right. On either side of the door were blue flowers in iron pots, kept alive inside the hallway by the sunlight streaming through the skylights above.

Laxus hesitated at the door, steeling himself for anything Mirajane might have to say.

There was no steeling himself against the possibility of his grandfather's death, though.

 _Just do it._

He pushed open the door.

The meeting room was small, made smaller still by the mound of muscle that was _supposed_ to be, on some plane, a man. Unruly snow-coloured hair and a scar over his right eye told Laxus it was Elfman. Maybe.

Dwarfed by his side was Evergreen. She was looking up at the Strauss with something like gladness. It had been a long time since they'd seen each other. On Elfman's right was little Lisanna, looking pixie-like with hair longer than what Laxus was used to. Beside her was Mirajane, commanding most of his attention even with her behemoth brother just feet away.

"Ready to talk _now_?" Mira's tongue was a finely honed knife.

Laxus tugged out a chair and dropped himself into it. It was harder than he cared for with no cushion under his ass. The door opened behind him and Freed came in.

"Morning." The long-haired man eased into the seat beside Laxus, setting down a tray of coffee.

"Laxus—" Mira began.

He held up his hand in a 'wait' fashion while he grabbed one of the dark green cups from Freed's tray and filled it to the very brim. The coffee was blacker than pitch and smelled strong enough to polish his insides. He took the first sip and was pleasantly pleased. Freed always made the best coffee.

He met Mira's eyes. "Nice trip?"

She pursed her lips. "It was fine."

"You were training, right? In the mountains?"

Annoyance flashed across Mira's delicate face. "Something like that _. As I said_ ," she rolled over Laxus when he opened his mouth again. "We travelled a long way."

Laxus wondered if there was another way to prolong the moment where she revealed her purpose there. Short of spilling coffee on himself, he couldn't think of anything. It didn't feel like a second degree burn on his dick kind of day. "What's up?"

"You haven't heard?" She searched his eyes.

Laxus' guts twisted again. _This is it._ "No. I haven't heard much of anything here."

"Fairy Tail is getting back together," Lisanna gushed. She looked like she'd been bursting for the moment she could spill out the words.

Laxus gave himself a moment to absorb that. "Gramps?"

"We haven't heard anything definite—"

"There was a shoe shop owner in Targin that said she heard that the Master of Fairy Tail was the one that put out the call," Lisanna bowled on.

"What?" Laxus' tongue felt swollen.

Mira's brows tightened. "It doesn't mean much; Tabatha is _always_ telling tales. _I_ heard that a certain someone wrote all over the King's castle in fire—"

Laxus barely heard them. "When do we leave?"


	11. Chapter 11

**Important** A/N:

There will come a point in this chapter where we brush over the evidence of a rape scene. If this makes you uncomfortable (I'm not going into grizzly details, I promise) then pass it on by and I'll see you next chapter :)

* * *

Natsu scurried to catch up to Lucy. "Wait."

She didn't. He reached for her hand. She was as slippery as a fish, dodging out of his grasp.

"I can't."

He jogged. She could really move when she wanted to. " _Lucy._ Hang _on._ Just—why would the earrings be yours?"

Still maintaining her brisk pace, Lucy held up her necklace. It was an exact match to the earring Natsu held too stiffly. Around her throat, the stone grabbed and reflected the sunlight, brighter than blood.

"Creepy," Happy said from above. Natsu almost forgot he was there.

Dismissing the cat's words was an easy way to bar out fear. "It still could have been that girl's. They're heart-shaped earrings, sure, made from garnet or—"

"Ruby," Lucy said mechanically. "They're ruby."

"Or not," Natsu replied stubbornly. "Anyone could have bought them at any store—"

"Not really," Lucy returned. "My father had them made for me for my tenth birthday. It was a custom piece. Earrings and necklace." It was impossible, but she imagined that her necklace felt cold despite her body heat and the hot summer sun.

"Okay, but let's look at the facts," Natsu said, trying to channel Erza or Gray. "How would your earrings end up beside dead girls?" _Girls that looked an awful lot like you._ He didn't voice that, worried of terrifying her. terrifying himself. "It's not like you go around killing people."

"Of course not," Lucy snapped.

"Maybe someone stole them?" Happy suggested.

" _How_?" Lucy asked. "I only switched them the other day when I went on that date with Riley." The motel came into view, looking as frumpy and beaten as ever. The gardens out front were overgrown with weeds. There was a garden gnome that stared out into the world with a chipped face and one missing eye. Lucy felt a surge of revulsion, most of it stemming from the sense of being violated. _You don't know that. Maybe it really is just a coincidence._

Natsu said, "I don't get why someone would steal and leave your earrings around."

Eyes fixed on the motel doors, Lucy shook her head. "I don't know." She reached blindly for the entrance.

"Maybe they're trying to frame you," Happy said.

Natsu chose watching his feet so he didn't trip on the steps over glowering at Happy. It was a close call, though. "This is stupid."

Lucy didn't bother answering Happy. It was warm inside Briar's Lock, warmer than it was in the blistering summer sun. The front desk was empty. She made for the stairs, taking them two at a time. Natsu stomped up behind her. She could _feel_ his agitation.

The stairs terminated in a landing. Lucy pulled out their room key before she even got to the door. She couldn't get it open, though. Her hands were shaking too badly. Natsu's hand closed around hers, warm and callused and familiar. He guided the key into the lock when she could not. The door popped open.

"It's _fine,_ Lucy." He followed her in and closed the door, then locked it for good measure.

Lucy hardly looked at him, going to the pile of clothes Virgo left for her. She dug through for the clothes she was wearing the first day back in Magnolia. The skirt had a grass stain on it from when they went fishing. Through the pockets she rummaged, the fronts, the backs.

"They're gone."

Natsu stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Maybe they fell out? Check around."

Lucy started throwing the clothes aside. What she didn't unfold Natsu grabbed and shook out. Maybe he would have been embarrassed when she got to the part of the pile where she dug through her underthings, but he was too focused to think about stuff like that.

"Natsu, they're _not_ here," Lucy said. "Someone—someone must have taken them."

"From our room?" Happy asked. "Wouldn't you have smelled it if someone strange came in here, Natsu?"

The dragon slayer dropped the lacy shirt he held, shaking his head. "I don't know. It's always musty in here and it smells like a hundred different people _all the time._ I can't tell."

Happy puffed up his cheeks with a breath.

"I guess I should mention that I found an earring just like that," Natsu said.

"What?" Lucy asked sharply.

"At the old age home," Natsu explained. "It was buried in the dirt by the garden."

Lucy's heart sank.

Natsu went to the pants he was wearing that night and found the earring in the pocket. It was still dirt-caked. It still smelled like blood. Lucy appeared at his shoulder, standing close enough he could feel her breath breaking over his forearm. She shivered slightly.

"When did you find it?" Lucy couldn't look away from the swelling curves on top of the heart, the gold cap that locked the ruby in place, the checkmark that would slide through her ear. She felt barren without them, yet she couldn't bring herself to touch them. _Not yet._ She hated that something her father gave to her was tainted like that.

"The night the guards took me in for questioning," Natsu said. "Just before I went looking for you. Maybe they just fell out when you were wearing them, Lucy."

Lucy clutched her elbows. "Natsu, I hadn't even _gone_ to the old age home then. We went _after_ , remember?"

A chill spider-walked down Natsu's spine. "Are you sure?"

"Of course. Besides that, I haven't _been_ to the pier yet."

He expelled a giant breath and scrubbed his hair. "We shouldn't tell the guards about this."

"Why?" Lucy asked.

"Because, they're going to ask why you were at the crime scene, Lucy," Natsu reasoned.

Lucy blinked and blinked. "What?" She'd never felt dumber, or slower.

"I was kidding before, but they might actually think you were involved," Happy explained.

"That's ridiculous," Lucy said.

"But true. The killings didn't start until we got into Magnolia," Natsu said.

A knock sounded on the door, making them all jump. It was Happy that collected himself enough to answer it. Gray, with Juvia at his back, entered. Gray shot a furtive look Lucy's way but focused most of his attention on Natsu.

"What's going on?"

Natsu looked to Lucy as if asking for her permission. She wasn't looking at him, or anything, really. She was staring out the dust-coated window. "Sit, I'll fill you in."

"We can think of an action plan, too," Happy said. To Lucy the cat added, "Don't worry, Lucy, we'll figure it out."

She gave him the barest of smiles.

* * *

Levy, arms crossed, hair blowing wildly in the wind, stared at a crater left in the earth, standing on top of what was at one time considered a rocky knoll. "It's like something exploded here." The soil was all but barren, with only the hardiest of shrubs hanging on, and even those were sunburned and wilting.

Gajeel crouched beside her and grabbed up a handful of dirt. He snuffed it like a dog might, breathing deeply of the iron and phosphorous and sodium that made this land hard to bear without the added stress of _whateverthehell_ happened there.

"It looks more like something was extracted." Lily was in his exceed form, small yet still somehow fierce.

"Do you think this is what Draculos was talking about?" Levy wondered.

"Must be," Gajeel said. "I don't sense _anything_ from the earth. No magic."

"It's like an anima," Lily added. "Someone's been using a similar process to take out the magic."

"I was looking over the locations of some of the other drain sites," Levy said. "I didn't think anything of them at first, but when I had them all up on the map, well…" She took off her pack. "Here, take a look." She searched through the top most pocket and came out with a huge map folded several times over again. She spread it out on the red soil, Gajeel and Lily gathering beside her to peer over her shoulder. She was aware of Gajeel's proximity, as she was always lately. Her heart beat strangely. She strangled the sensation and focused.

"Notice anything?"

Gajeel stared at the names of several towns scattered throughout Fiore for so long he felt stupid. Nothing jumped out at him.

"I don't know," Lily said, easing Gajeel's ego. At least he wasn't the _only_ one that couldn't connect the dots.

Levy explained, "Over the last fifteen years, these are all locations of mass tragedies, or a huge gathering and release of magical power. This here?" She tapped a region that was mountainous. "This is where the Oracion Seis found Nirvana." She tapped another region off Fiore's coast. "This is where the Tower of Heaven accepted the etherion blast. This is where Silver froze Sun Village, and this was one of the Face locations. And those are only the ones that I know."

The look Gajeel gave her was one of both awe and horror. "You pieced all that together."

"It's just a theory," Levy said.

He quirked his mouth into a smile and shook his head. "I haven't seen one of your theories go sideways."

Levy flushed. Then she sobered. "Let's hope that I'm not right about this one, though. These events… they'd leave scars in the land, Gajeel. Like a memory of magic. I think on their own they're not much to really worry about—that, and I didn't think it was _possible_ to extract that kind of magic from the land—but together… can you imagine what someone would do with that kind of power?"

"Fiore would be a memory."

"Earthland," Levy corrected. "It would be enough to destroy Earthland."

* * *

Erza stared at the rock wall with mounting irritation. "Rockslides."

Carla dropped out of the sky, landing with grace on Queen Moro's gleaming neck. "The blockage is at least a kilometer long, but I saw another route to the west. It'll probably take us a few hours to circle back around and get out, though."

"And by then we'll be walking in the dark," Erza reasoned.

"Right," Carla agreed.

"And we run the risk of breaking our horses' legs. Then we really will be walking the rest of the way."

Wendy looked to the sky. "What are we going to do? I could try my roar on it…"

Erza shook her head. "I have swords that would do the same kind of damage, but if we do that we run the risk of causing another rockslide." The ravine walls looked unstable, to say the least, broken rocks held together just barely by the roots of twisted pines and birches. "If we can get around to the other side safely in the morning light, we should do so."

Wendy popped her thumb into her mouth and chewed on the skin surrounding her nail. "But Raven's Canyon—"

"Is on the other side of this rockslide," Erza said. "We'll be safe enough."

"You said you didn't believe in ghosts," Wendy reminded her.

"I don't," Erza agreed. "There are worse things than ghosts that wander through this region."

Wendy imagined that Erza's voice held a note of ominousness. "Like what?"

The redhead sighed. "Thieves, bootleggers using the valleys as roads to get from one side of Fiore to the other, hungry creatures, wolves and hounds of various descents."

"What does that mean?" Wendy asked.

"That we'll be taking turns taking the watch," Erza said.

* * *

Lucy stood at the windowsill, arms crossed. From her motel room, Magnolia looked dark. The sun had set an hour ago and only a quarter of the streetlights were on. Next door, the sounds of a live band could be heard setting up in the Thorn and Thistle. It would be a loud, busy night for the bar.

"I don't want to be sitting here all night," Juvia muttered.

Lucy stiffened at the sound of her voice. Every time Juvia spoke was like getting slapped in the face. She looked over her shoulder and saw the water mage had made herself comfortable on the loveseat, Lucy's blankets folded and shoved to one end. She could only see the back of Juvia's gleaming head of careless curls but she imagined she looked miserable.

"I should be helping Gray-sama."

"Juvia…" Lucy hedged.

Juvia turned and met her eyes directly; it was a huge change from the way Gray was treating her. So much so that Lucy didn't know how to proceed.

"He might need me," Juvia reasoned. "But I suppose if someone is targeting girls that look like you, you should remain out of sight and I will remain to protect you."

Lucy snorted depreciatively, trying to outpace her own demons. "I don't really need protection."

"Then I can go to the pier and assist Gray-sama." She actually started to rise.

"Wait," Lucy said, absolutely torn.

Juvia halted.

Lucy cleared her throat and tried again. "I don't think we should be splitting up and wandering around by ourselves. It's dangerous. So what if they've only been attacking girls with blonde hair? That doesn't mean that they won't attack you, too."

"I'm a skilled mage," Juvia said.

Lucy's chest panged. _She doesn't mean that you're not._ She smothered her insecurities with a smile. "I know, but why take the chance?"

Juvia flopped back into her chair and tipped her head back to look at the cobwebby ceiling. "I suppose you're right."

Trying to make the best of it, Lucy offered, "Did you want anything? Water, or tea? We have a kettle."

"No, thank you."

They fell into what Lucy thought was an awkward silence. Lucy faced the window again, Juvia went back to slumping in her seat. Several long minutes passed.

"Were you sad on your own?" Juvia asked suddenly.

Lucy looked away from Magnolia. "Pardon?"

"When everyone left." Juvia sat up and angled herself so she could look over the back of the couch. Her gaze was hard to bear. "Erza and Wendy took to the southern regions, Gray and I went north. Natsu… it sounds like he went all over. And you remained behind. Was it lonely?"

Lucy wrung her hands together. "I guess at first, yeah." Not just at first, but she'd managed to bury herself in her work at Sorcerer Weekly, so she got by.

"Did he ask you to go with him?" She hadn't broken eye contact.

All the breath felt like it had been squeezed from Lucy's lungs. "Natsu?"

"Gray-sama," Juvia clarified. "The night we left, when you two were in the Thorn and Thistle. Did he ask you to go?"

 _'I would try to stay with you_.' That didn't qualify. "No, Juvia. He didn't want me to go with you."

She looked like she was going to ask something else. Lucy half hoped it would be what happened after she left the Thorn and Thistle. She half hoped that she'd just drop it.

Juvia finally turned her dark eyes to another direction. Lucy collapsed against the bed, wrung out and weak, unable to say the things she longed to say.

* * *

Gray couldn't smell out blood like Natsu could, but he didn't need a hellhound nose to feel the bruise left on the land after last night's attack. Every inch of his skin was _crawling_ , and had been for _hours. Since yesterday_. Since he stepped foot in Magnolia. He itched around his throat, his forearm. The skin was cold, cold, cold. He almost shivered but _refused._

The docks smelled like brine and blood and metal crates. Rust. Natsu had his nose in the air, breathing deeply. Happy flew above, seeing everything he could. Gray alternated between looking out at the ocean and down at his boots and the cracked concrete ground he stepped on, stained white with salt from so many winters gone by. There was a sick weight resting on his chest that he couldn't shake. It didn't take long to identify it: he didn't want to leave Juvia and Lucy alone together. It was a selfish, petty request, one that, at the time, he didn't bother arguing because it would either mean that _he_ was going to get trapped alone with Lucy while Natsu and Juvia teamed up, or they were going to look suspicious. It was not the way to play cool, to act normal. It was also not the way to repair things with Lucy, but fuck, he didn't know what to say. _'Hey, I'm a lying piece of shit that fucked and ditched?_ '

A+.

There was a knuckle-sized rock in front of his foot. Gray kicked it hard and sent it skidding into one of the rusted freight crates.

Natsu winced. Not just winced… _jumped._ When he recovered he glared. "Be quiet."

"Why? You don't think this guy will attack at the same place, do you?" Gray asked.

"I don't know," Natsu replied in a muted voice. "That guard said he was going for girls…"

"His name is Ackles. And he said out of towners _specifically_ ,' Happy said. "If you ask me, it makes sense that he'd be hanging around the pier, waiting for people to get off boats."

"The pier isn't the _only_ place girls hang around. In fact, I might say that this is probably the _least_ likely place we're going to find a hot blonde," Gray said.

"Then where would you suggest?" Natsu asked.

Gray sighed. "Thorn and Thistle?"

"That dive?"

"Yeah," Gray laughed humorlessly. "That dive."

"Just hang on," Natsu said. "Before we leave I want to look around a little more. Let's find the place she was killed." More morbid curiosity dragging him along. "I wish I knew what that girl looked like."

"Why?" Happy asked.

Natsu glanced at him. "Just because." He didn't want to explain that it was so he could convince himself that they didn't _really_ look like Lucy, that he was just drawing parallels. That sounded crazy. He shrugged instead and bullshitted. "I just think that guard—"

"Ackles," Happy supplied.

"Does a very shitty job."

The wind shifted. Gray let Natsu and Happy's words flow over him, distracted by the pain radiating under his skin. His arm was so cold now that it _ached_. He was starting to get a migraine. _Something's wrong._ "Hey."

Natsu dropped off mid-sentence, alert to the same thing Gray was. He tipped his nose to the sky again and huffed hugely. "You smell that?"

Gray was about to deny but took his words back. The air was rank. "Gods. What _is_ that?"

"It's the same thing we smelled the other night, Natsu," Happy said. "Remember, when we found the earring?"

"Yeah." Natsu followed the scent through the stacks of crates, every sense on high alert. The smell got worse. Enough so that he had to breathe through his mouth. Behind him, Gray pulled up his shirt and tucked his nose into its collar. For the first thirty seconds he could smell his own cologne, deodorant and laundry detergent. Then the stench leached into his clothing and invaded _everything_.

Sulfur and rot.

"What the _fuck_."

"It's so gross," Natsu complained.

Happy looked like he was going cross-eyed. He flew a little higher. The lights from the street lamps didn't get to the spaces between the crates, but he didn't need to see in there to see where Natsu was taking them. thirty feet out the crates ended and the docks came into view. There was a huge slab of open concrete. There, beneath one street lamp, was a large stain that could only have been blood. It looked like it had been wiped clean, but nothing, not soap and water, not bleach, could get the red from the porous concrete.

"I think I found it, Natsu," Happy reported. Looking down, he could barely see the pink of Natsu's hair. Gray was a pale shadow.

"We found something, too," Natsu said. He sounded strange. _Worried,_ Happy thought. The cat dropped to the dragon slayer's shoulder. Natsu's face was shadowed so Happy couldn't see all the apprehension in it.

"What is it?"

"A shirt," Gray said.

Happy squinted and found him in the dark. He held a burgundy tank top between his fingers.

The smell hit Happy and he realized that the shirt wasn't burgundy. It was saturated in blood. "What the hell?"

Natsu swallowed a tennis ball sized lump in his throat. "There's another girl here."

"The guards probably just missed this last night," Happy said.

Natsu was already on the move, though, weaving between the crates. It was Gray that explained, "It's fresh blood, Happy."

* * *

Now that he had the scent of blood in his nose it was easy to follow the trail. Too easy. Natsu dodged in and out of crates, leapt over skids, and left behind Happy and Gray. Happy was calling his name. Natsu wished he'd be quiet. Gray was silent, following his trail. He was good like that.

A crate marked 'Port Credit' was smeared with something that gleamed in the dim streetlamps. He didn't need anyone to tell him that it was blood. Fresh, too. His legs felt like two cement pillars, unwilling to bring him around the crate's opposite side, and yet, some force dragged him along.

Stumbling into the streetlamp's glow, Natsu found her on the ground. She was a tangle of blonde hair and limbs. Naked save for a pair of pink panties, torn along the waistband and the right leg, she was pale skinned, nearly grey. The only things that held colour were her rose-bright lips, the dark stain around her throat where she'd been cut deep enough to bleed out slowly, and the golden key she held in her hand.

There was plenty to look at, the bruises, the scrapes. Yet Natsu could only focus on the key. The key that was capped with red. The key with the zodiac symbol. His mouth went so dry; his lungs went so small.

"Natsu?"

Happy's voice jarred him enough that he could look away from the key so he could study her face. Her eyes were open, dark brown and unseeing. Her cheekbones were just right. Even her body structure, not too thin, not too thick. His focus narrowed. Three more seconds passed and he had himself _convinced._

 _You're not looking at this right,_ his mind reasoned. _She's back at the motel with Juvia._ The wind blew, grabbing one of her tresses from her face. Her nose was the exact same, straight, lightly flecked with freckles.

"Lucy?" _She left the motel room and wandered out here._

"What?" Happy asked. He was right over Natsu's shoulder.

"Holy fuck." Gray cursed when he saw what Natsu did. "Holy shit." His voice was distant. Natsu dropped to his knees and reached, fingers searching for that key.

"Don't touch her, Natsu." Happy's voice was shrill.

He kept reaching.

Gray jerked himself out of his panic enough to grab Natsu's wrist. He yanked the dragon slayer away a millisecond before he could touch her. "Don't." The pain in his arm only grew. His eyesight blurred, his migraine reaching new heights.

Natsu yanked out of his grasp and went back again. This time Gray pushed him back. Natsu fell flat on his behind. He cussed and scrambled. "Fuck off, I have to help her—"

"She's dead, Natsu, stop."

"The key—"

"Looks like a house key or something," Gray said, trying to be reasonable. Reasonable people didn't look at wet smiles or think about how dead eyes saw through you. "Or a cabin key. Maybe… maybe she was staying on one of the boats docked out there."

Natsu gave him a _'are you blind_ ,' look. "It's—" But when he looked back the gilded surface had turned brass. The red on top was gone. It was monochromatic, bland. Not a celestial key. Not _Loke_ 's key. He reached for it again with a panging, ice-cold hand, needing to be sure. This time he skirted beneath Gray's grasp. The metal was cold and unmoving in the girl's stiff fingers. There was no energy signature coming from it, nothing to say that it was celestial.

Gray was talking behind him. Swearing, really, rather impressively.

He lifted his eyes to her face. It wasn't Lucy that looked back at him, but a girl with black eyes and a red painted mouth that was really too wide. She didn't just have freckles over her nose, but _all_ over her face. She was similar to Lucy only in that she was the right age, the right height and build, and the right colours. Blonde and ivory.

 _You're cracking up_.

"I'll go get the guards," Happy said. "You two hang out here, in case the killer comes back."

* * *

By the time Ackles and his team showed up, asked their questions, did a sweep of the area and relieved Natsu and Gray, it was late. _Beyond_ late. The large city clock tolled three in the morning. Gray, despite everything, yawned. Natsu followed suit.

"How are we going to catch this guy?" Happy asked. He'd given up flying, dropping to land on Natsu's shoulder. Natsu carried him but even Happy's weight seemed to be too much. Despite the exhaustion in every bone, he walked with vigor back to Briar's Lock.

"I don't know. We can't keep showing up late to the party," Gray muttered.

"We can take a catalog of every blonde girl in the city and keep an eye on them," Natsu said with not much hope.

As expected, Happy shot him down. "There's no way. It would take too much time, and how do you explain to them what you're doing? There'd be panic."

"Yeah, yeah," Natsu grumbled.

"There can't be much left anyway," Gray said, "Not Lucy's age."

"We could use Lucy as bait," Happy mused.

"No," Natsu said sharply.

"I was mostly kidding," Happy replied in a weak voice.

Gray said, "We'll figure something else out. There has to be _something_."

They fell into silence, each pursuing their own line of thought.

Natsu said, "I'm going to go back tomorrow morning, when the sun is up. Maybe there'll be a clue or something that the guards missed."

Briar's Lock came into view. Beside the motel, the Thorn and Thistle was closing up for the night. A waitress bustled back and forth, picking up chairs and setting them down on top of tables so the morning staff could mop the floors. Outside, there was someone in the alley that clung to one of the dumpsters and heaved their guts onto the pavement. Gray looked at them with some kind of longing in his eye that Natsu didn't understand.

A woman wearing a soft green dress clopped on by. Her hair was coral, her eyes shadowed by the night. She looked at Gray and smiled widely. His father's mark burned more than ever. _Demon,_ he wondered, but his mark had been acting up for days. With no definite answer, he looked after her, wondering, until he couldn't see her anymore.

"What are you doing?" Happy asked, realizing Gray had stopped.

The ice mage shook himself. The pain in his arm turned into something bearable. "Nothing, I guess."

The woman was completely out of his mind when Natsu grabbed the motel's door and pulled it open wide, replaced instead by the two upstairs.

* * *

Lucy was fitfully asleep, dreaming of confessions and keys and Aquarius. The sound of voices in her room woke her. Blinking blearily, she sat up on the bed and watched Juvia unfold herself from the couch. She went to Gray and kissed him.

"Everything went well?"

Gray didn't look at Lucy; he was stiffer than a board. "Maybe we'll talk about it in the morning."

Natsu came into the room, Happy at his side. He locked eyes with Lucy, greedily watching her, as if he had forgotten what she looked like. "Alright, Luce?"

"I'm fine, Natsu," Lucy said. "It was quiet here."

"Come on, Juvia," Gray took her hand. "Let's get back." The door closed, leaving Lucy, Happy and Natsu alone.

Lucy asked, "What happened out there?"

"There was another girl," Happy admitted.

"Really?" Lucy's heart sank.

Natsu looked like he wanted to silence the cat by any means necessary. He refrained, saying only, "Yeah."

Lucy didn't know how to ask if any of her other stuff showed up there. There was a room full of stuff back in Crocus to appear and spook her.

"You got your keys, Lucy?"

Lucy's heart jumped. "Yeah."

"You should keep them on you. Even when you sleep," Natsu said.

"You're freaking me out."

He tried a smile. "I wouldn't worry about it. You'll be safe in here with us, but just in case."

 _Right._

"If you're good, Lucy, I'm going to have a shower," Natsu said. "You in, Happy?"

The cat looked at him longingly. "After that disgusting pier? You bet."

In an effort to appear like everything was normal, Lucy asked, "Do you guys want anything? I think there was a vending machine down the hall… chips, or maybe some chocolate? It's not real food, but nothing's open right now."

Natsu looked torn. Finally, he shook his head. "I'm okay."

Lucy watched the door close behind him and Happy then stood. She knew that look anywhere. Going for her change purse, she took out some coins then strapped her keys to her belt. As ever lately, Loke's was hot. He was watching her. It was nice to know that he had her back.

She slipped out of the door and wandered down the hallway. In the nighttime, the motel turned their lights way down low to conserve energy. It took her a few seconds to adjust, but when she did she was able to see pretty well. The vending machine was located at the end of the hall, the light from its interior reflecting off the wood paneling on the opposite side. She hurried to it, keeping her ears peeled for anything, not wanting to get caught by _anyone_ out here, let alone someone that was hacking blondes to bits.

Coming around the corner, she saw that the vending machine was scarcely stocked. There was a bag of peanuts and a caramel chocolate bar. She bought both. They fell to the bottom of the machine with a definitive _clunk._ She bent to grab them. The PUSH bar almost didn't work, the hinges squealing with the effort she put into getting inside.

Down the hall, the balcony door opened. She glanced over just in time to see a familiar figure slipping outside. Lucy grabbed her treats out of the greedy machine and stood, having every intention of going back to her room. She hesitated, though, remembering Juvia's strange question and the way Gray wouldn't look at her.

She bit her tongue hard and summoned her courage.

Every step was too loud. She made an effort to quiet them, but her peanut package just crinkled, making up for the silence. At the balcony, she grabbed the door's handle like she was _much_ braver than she actually was, and threw open the door. It had started raining again, and it was colder than hell for the middle of summer.

She found her quarry leaning against the balcony, facing Magnolia. His shoulders were as rigid as steel, his elbows propped on the bannister. He looked over his shoulder, hair blowing in front of his eyes. He didn't even look particularly surprised to see her.

"What are you doing out here, Lucy?"

Lucy closed the balcony door and stuffed the peanuts and the chocolate bar in her pocket. She came to stand beside Gray, again pretending that she was more sure of herself. "What are _you_ doing out here?"

He shook his head. "Forgetting a shitty night, hopefully."

She didn't realize he had a bottle of whisky in his hand until he brought it to his lips and took a huge mouthful. He didn't flinch swallowing it.

"Natsu told me about that girl."

Gray brought himself to search her eyes and decided that he didn't actually. Maybe Natsu told her that they found her, but not _how_. "You got your keys with you?"

"Of course I do. You guys are scaring me," Lucy said.

"Just—"

"A precaution?" she wondered. "Natsu already said as much. I got it."

She sounded both scared and irritated. He shot a look her way. Her mouth was definitely in an annoyed frown. He took another deep swallow of his whisky. A chug, really. It was already going to his head with nothing much in his stomach. "You should go back in."

"So no one sees us together?" Lucy asked. She didn't mean to say it.

Her words cut him right through to the bone. He flinched. "Yeah. Something like that."

His face was shadowed but Lucy imagined that it was pinched, as it always was when he saw her now. The bottle came up again. Another good portion disappeared. "Fuck, forget it. I don't know why I'm out here anyway." She turned away, meaning to head back in.

"Lucy, wait."

She ground to a stop like he'd grabbed her wrist and kept her there. "Yeah?"

He cleared his throat. "Sorry. About earlier, you know? I shouldn't have sat back down when you were heading back to the motel. I told myself that it wasn't far, and that Happy was with you, and Natsu was finishing up with that guard, but…"

She pinched her lips together. "It's okay."

He nodded stiffly.

She started to turn away again.

"I—I have your keys."

Lucy's shoulders fell. Her breath came out in a weak puff that was supposed to be, on some level, a laugh. She came back and held out her hand, keeping her eyes off his. It was supposed to help dispel awkwardness. It didn't. She asked, "You kept them all this time?"

Gray went digging through his pocket and pulled out his wallet. "What was I supposed to do with them?"

"Throw them away?"

"They're your keys," he said.

"It's not like I live there anymore."

"Most people just say thanks." He dropped them into her outstretched hand, annoyance palpable.

"Thanks." She tucked them into her pocket and started off again. Her legs were being contrary. So was her mouth. "Gray?"

"Yeah?"

She faced him again. "How do you live with the guilt?"

His mouth quirked in an ugly grin. "Since coming back to Magnolia? Mostly try not to think about it."

"How? It's all I think about now."

He lifted his bottle of whisky. "Want some?"

Lucy snorted. "That's what got us into this mess in the first place."

"I don't think that's going to be a problem this time," Gray said. "I can barely look at you."

Lucy felt tears press against her eyes. "Fuck you."

He held out the bottle again as if in apology. "Come on, I didn't mean it like that. It's just hard. I feel like a piece of shit. I don't know how to be friends with you, Lucy, but I want to be. Isn't that stupid?"

A tremor took hold of Lucy's body. A tear snuck past her lashes. She swiped at it in exasperation. "Yeah, pretty stupid."

"Drink with me. Maybe we'll remember how to be friends again."

She hesitated. Then decided what the hell, it wasn't like things could get any worse.

* * *

Natsu had three circuits of the motel behind him before he heard Lucy's snorting laughter coming from a set of doors that he at first thought was a room. His heart skipped. What was she doing in someone else's room so late? Then he heard Gray's voice and he relaxed some.

Sort of.

"They're this way."

Happy, tail erected behind him, matched Natsu's long steps with four of his own.

The dragon slayer forgot about politeness and just ripped open the door. He almost hit Lucy with it. She was leaned back against a bannister, her golden hair damp for the third night in a row while the outside air played over her skin. She was cold, her arms full of goosebumps, but she didn't seem bothered by it. He saw why a second later, a half empty bottle of whisky in her hand.

"Natsu!" She looked startled, like she was caught.

"What are you doing out here, Lucy? I was looking for you." Natsu couldn't properly articulate the fear he felt coming out of the washroom and finding her gone. The certainty he had that she was going to be the next victim. It almost made him mindless.

"Oh…" Her tongue went between her teeth while she dunked her hand into her pocket and pulled out the peanuts and a half-melted chocolate bar. "I got you stuff. And then I found Gray."

It was harder to be mad at her after that. He redirected his anger, finding Gray looking very much on the rough side of drunk. "The fuck?"

"We were just…" Gray trailed off.

"Getting really drunk when there is a killer on the loose," Happy supplied, voicing what Natsu was too angry to.

Lucy snorted. It was brimming with scorn. "No one would come to challenge _Team Natsu_. We'd kick their ass."

He couldn't tell if she was mocking or serious. Maybe both. Natsu breathed deeply, finding calmness from _somewhere_. "Are you cold, Lucy?"

"Mm…" She ignored him. Her eyes, as dark as rum, found his. "Do you like your peanuts?"

"Yeah. Thanks. Let's go back to the room and you can share them with me." He felt like punching Gray. He didn't. He'd save that for later.

"Yeah?" She took a wobbling step towards him and almost stepped on top of Happy. Natsu grabbed her up around the waist. She took that as an invitation to wrap her arms around his neck and slump into him heavily. With a grunt, he picked her up from beneath the legs, totally supporting her weight. "Door."

Gray sobered enough to take the whisky from Lucy then get the door like Natsu asked. He didn't say a word as Natsu took Lucy away, more than glad. His only regret was that Happy stayed exactly where he was.

* * *

"I didn't mean to be gone so long." Lucy's fingers were in his hair.

Natsu lied. "It's okay, Lucy."

"We were trying to be friends."

Natsu met her eyes from the corner of his. "Trying to be?"

She nodded.

There were a lot of questions on his tongue. He swallowed them back. "You've been weird as shit lately. You and Gray both."

"I know."

"You think you're going to tell me why?"

"You want to know?"

His heart turned. Something told him _no._ Something equally loud said _yes._ "In the morning, okay?"

"Why not now?" She felt brave enough to say it.

"You're not sober."

"That's the point."

He only got more nervous. "If you're not brave enough to say it sober, you're not ready to say it."

Lucy chewed over that in silence.

Natsu juggled her to open the door. Her skin was so warm. Inside, the bathroom light acted like a nightlight. Natsu didn't bother turning on any of the other lamps. He was just going to have to turn them back off again. "Can you stand?"

"Yeah," Lucy said.

Natsu didn't believe her until he set her feet on the ground and she didn't topple over. "Do you want the bed or the couch?"

"Bed," Lucy said after a millisecond of thought.

"Alright." Natsu started towards the couch.

"You didn't like last night?"

His ears roared. "What?"

"In the bed. You didn't like it?"

He sweated. Turning to look at her, he tried to strum up an answer. "Yes," came out first.

Lucy smiled. "Then we can do it again?"

"You hate sharing your bed." Natsu didn't know _why_ he reminded her of that.

"This isn't my bed," Lucy said with a carefree grin. More soberly she added, "I don't want to sleep alone tonight, Natsu."

He almost said he'd be in the room, but he wasn't that strong. "Okay."

Lucy watched him as he came back to the bed and shucked down to his shorts. He'd never felt more exposed with her eyeing his every move. She didn't look away until he was pulling back the sheets and sliding inside, and then it was only so she could grab her shirt and pull it straight over her head. Her bra was slate gray shot through with white stripes. Her shorts came next. Her underwear matched. Natsu realized he was staring and lifted his gaze to hers. She met his eyes with the vague detachment all drunks have and gave him a look that said she knew he watched and knew that he liked what he saw.

She stepped out of the circle of her shorts and kicked off her shoes. Her socks next, then padded barefoot to the bed and slipped between the sheets. Natsu reminded himself to _breathe_ as she shimmied close enough that they were body-to-body. Of course there was no room. He propped himself up on his side to give her a little more space. She took it, a greedy girl, until she was practically beneath him.

Then she touched his cheek as if she needed to center herself so she could find his eyes. "Thanks for coming to find me."

He remembered how to speak. "You're welcome."

"I really did just want to get you something."

Beneath him, she was autumn by the dull bathroom light. Her lips were as red as maple leaves, her hair so gold it was rye. He was too close to her but couldn't pull away. Her fingers were cool against his cheek, keeping him rooted in place. Her skin. There was so much against his. His body reacted; it couldn't be helped.

He tried to focus on the issue at hand. "Don't just take off again, okay? Even if you're just going to hang out with Gray, let me know."

"Are you scared after all those murders?"

Natsu was truthful. "Every time I look at one of those girls all I see is you." Something told him it was all he _wanted_ to see. _That's not true._ It was all he _could_ see. All he was _made_ to see. "I don't want that to be reality, Lucy."

Her fingers inched into his hair, then down so she could cup the back of his neck. "I like the way you care." She licked her lips.

"…Yeah?"

"Were you really going to kiss me the other day? Before I went out with Riley?"

Natsu felt brave enough— _stupid_ enough—to be truthful. "Until you ran away."

A look overcame Lucy. Natsu's heart puttered. Then stalled as she both came up and pulled him down. Her lips tasted like sugar and rye, sweet and bitter. She was soft. She opened her mouth and changed the kiss from something that was a little less than sweet to something that burned him up. Her tongue was silken, her breath potent. His immediate response was to do _nothing_. Then it was to kiss her back. He started, earning a pleased trill from somewhere deep in her throat. Then he stopped and leaned away.

"Natsu—" Lucy managed to sound both vexed and hot as fuck.

He rested his forehead against hers and panted, out of breath after doing so _little._ "I think it's time to go to sleep, Lucy."

She licked her lips again, honey eyes boring into him. "You didn't like it?"

He couldn't help pressing his hips into her just a little to prove how much he had. Her eyes went wider, then heavy lidded. Natsu said, "Don't think that." _Gods._ He wanted to kiss her again. "It's just—it's really late. You're really drunk."

Her fingers tightened on his neck again, like she was going to call his bluff. He didn't know if he'd be able to pull away for a second time. He willed her to release him. He'd never ask, though.

Her hand slid down his neck over his bare back only to stop on the waistband of his shorts. His body got rigid twice over again. Then she said, "Maybe you're right." She looked abashed, ashamed.

He wanted to shout that he wasn't, he wanted to tell her to keep going, he wanted to say the hell with caring about taking advantage of her and just _do_ it. He couldn't. Maybe if things were different. Maybe if it were him out there drinking with her tonight. But that wasn't the way things were.

"Good night, Lucy."

"Good night, Natsu." Her fingers loosened. Her eyes were already closed.

Natsu edged out of her grasp and sank down in the bed in a more comfortable position. He was mostly wrapped around her body, his cheek in line with her collarbone. He relaxed and closed his eyes. His palm ached the most it had ever. He thought it should keep him awake; it only dragged him into unconsciousness.


	12. Chapter 12

Standing on the balcony with the summer wind roaring by, it was easy to forget he wasn't by himself. Happy jabbered. Lectured, really. Gray couldn't specifically say what it was that he lectured about, but the cat went on long enough that his voice bled into the background and the bottle of whisky was three quarters of the way gone. Gray had to stop himself, knowing that the next morning was going to be a heaping pile of regret. The only good that came from this shit show was that his father's mark—and his migraine—had eased back to only a dull ache, and the hole in his chest where his guilt lived felt temporarily hollowed out.

"I gotta get back, Happy." Gray said when Happy took a breath. Every word was heavily truncated and slurred. It had been a long time since he'd been so drunk, and being the only one feeling this way now wasn't entirely pleasant. It was easier when Lucy was there, sharing the burden. That way he felt less like an alcoholic. And if it was her that was the cause of the drinking, well... Everyone had a vice.

Happy said something that slid over the ice mage. Vision doubling, _tripling_ , he lurched for the balcony doors and clumsily tore them open. Inside the motel was stiflingly hot compared to the breeze and rain that ruled the outside. Happy didn't follow.

His feet took him down the hall, the walls supported him when gravity visited and coordination abandoned. Room twenty-two came into view. That was where Lucy was. He felt sick just thinking about her behind that door. He kept on, staggering drunkenly like one of the regulars at the Thorn and Thistle. His whisky clacked loudly against the wall. Gray lifted it numbly and looked at the jostling amber liquid in mild disgust. He was drunk enough that he felt gross. Drunk enough that drinking more seemed like a good idea.

 _Don't be an idiot._

"Gray-sama?"

Juvia's voice was liquid fire in his icy veins. Lifting his gaze, he found her. She seemed rather tall. Then he realized it was only because he'd slumped to the floor like a fucking waste of skin. Grunting with effort, he pressed his hands against the ground, spilling some of his whisky—the cap had gone somewhere—and righted himself. Juvia came to him, blue nighty clinging to her embellished curves. She looked sleepy, like she'd just crawled out of their bed.

"Gray-sama, what's wrong? Are you hurt? Or—" She saw the whisky bottle and trailed off, understanding coming over her. Using gentle fingers, she pried it from his hand. He let her because it was obvious he couldn't help himself.

She asked, "Can you walk?"

"I'm fine," Gray slurred and started off again.

"Mmm... Our room is here," Juvia told him, guiding him back to the door he passed. He checked. Forty-seven. It seemed like he was just looking at twenty-two.

"Oh."

Juvia opened the door and proved that he was in the right place. His coat was thrown across the small, beat up kitchen table, his boots were in the middle of the hallway, exactly where he'd left them. He never used to be so slovenly and couldn't quite recall when the change had come upon him.

Bringing him inside, Juvia closed and locked the door. Gray leaned into the sliding mirror closet and waited for her. The room was dark; she was a blue-tinged shadow. She came back to him, eyes wide and questioning. She held back the torrent for the moment, set the whisky on the ground, and started unbuttoning his shirt. Her fingers were skilled, making fast work of the buttons she'd learned well long ago. To get the material over his shoulders she pulled him from his slumped position. The shirt fell to the ground and stayed there. She worked on his pants, next.

"I can undress myself," Gray told her finally when the deed was almost done.

"I know," Juvia conceded. "I do it because I want to."

"Even when I'm a mess."

It was a statement, she answered anyway. "Because I love you."

He scrubbed his face. "I feel so fucking gone."

She knew what he meant. "I love you even when you're lost."

Of course she did. She loved him too much. Gray stepped out of his pants and lurched towards the bed. Juvia followed. She didn't speak again until Gray had collapsed on the mattress, taking up most of the room, and she was laying down beside him.

"Was it very bad?"

He stared up at the ceiling. "What's that, Juvia?"

"The girl you found. Was the scene very bad?"

He meant to look at her from the corner of his eye; he could only see the ceiling. "Yeah. It was bad." When Lucy deigned to leave his head, all he could think were those torn panties, the blood.

She let it drop. "How is your mark?"

"It hurts."

Light pressure landed on his wrist. Juvia teased her fingers up his arm; her touch left behind warmness that bit into both the drunkenness and the constant cold. She came up on her elbow and helped him see her. Even in the dark she looked sort of sad. He wondered if it was because of his state or the events that helped lead him here.

"Does this make it feel better?"

"Yes." Gray found he could still use his body. He pushed her ocean-blue hair back from her delicate face. Shadows made hollows of her cheekbones, kissed her lips into a deep plum. Her lashes fluttered; she leaned into his touch.

"You're beautiful, Juvia." He wished he wasn't slurring.

She smiled. It was a smile he always wanted to see but he felt like the opportunity to do so was slipping through his fingers. She sat up, pushing the blankets back, and grabbed the hem of her nighty. Gray was transported to another place, another time. _'Take it off.'_ It had been a different girl then. One that didn't love him. One that was aching like he was. His bad decisions lined themselves up in a neat row. Walking her home. Kissing her. Touching her. Not walking away sooner. Running away after.

"Stop thinking about other things," Juvia said in a soft, insistent voice.

"Juvia…" He wasn't sure what he was going to say. Maybe the truth. Then she brought her nighty's material up over her crystalline skin. His mouth dried up as always, like she'd taken his ability to speak. Nude now, she locked eyes with him and trailed her fingers down the centreline of his body all the way past his bellybutton. He got harder with every inch gone past until he was straining against his shorts, not yet drunk enough to have that hindered. She grabbed him through the material and rubbed slowly.

"Does this also make it feel better?"

The pain in his arm was a distant memory. "Yes." He allowed himself to touch her, though he didn't think he deserved it. Her breasts were just as soft as always, hard tipped with excitement and cold. She tugged down his shorts, smiling like a fox when he bounced out, rigid.

Head spinning, Gray attempted to sit up, thinking to lead as Juvia usually wanted. Perhaps recognizing how drunk he truly was, she pressed him down by the shoulders and shimmied so she was on top of him. His hardness slid between her legs, brushing against her but not penetrating, not yet.

Gray took her by the hips and lifted his gaze. Still smiling, Juvia gathered one breast up and teased while she slipped her free hand between her legs and massaged herself. _Persephone,_ he thought again. Lulled into loving him.

* * *

Levy let the heat from the fire kiss her skin. It was cold for mid-summer. She blamed it on being in the lowest part of the valley. Gajeel settled down next to her, shoulder so close it was brushing hers.

"We should keep up with our lessons."

Levy checked her silver watch. "It's nearly eleven."

Gajeel didn't look perturbed. "If we didn't stop to look for something to burn, it'd be earlier, wouldn't it?"

"Seriously? It was cold," Levy complained.

Gajeel quieted, his face nearly unreadable in the dancing firelight. "Come on, Levy." He picked himself up like he was tireless. On the opposite side of the fire, Lily curled around his sword and snored softly, basking in the heat. _I'm not the only one that was cold,_ Levy thought but didn't say. There was no point; it was an argument that was lost on Gajeel.

"Fine." She stood. "But let's be quick. I'm tired."

Gajeel took off his council-issue coat. Beneath he wore a dark tank. He was just as fit as ever. Levy was so busy admiring the broad stretch of his chest, she missed when he came for her, shoulder tucked down, arms thrown wide. He caught her around the waist and would have slammed her to the ground if she was prepared. The threat of her head getting cracked in half like a melon on a piece of granite stilled his movements. He set her down more gently than he'd planned, on her feet once more.

"The hell was that?"

"Sorry." Levy's cheeks were red. "Try again."

Gajeel turned and took a step in the opposite direction, brushing himself down as he went. His body was singing, and it wasn't just for the promise of the physical exertion this could potentially offer if Levy stepped up her game. Meaning to catch her off her guard, he swung around sharply, lifting his leg in a high roundhouse kick. She blocked it. Gajeel expected that to be the last of it, but suddenly he was looking at the night sky, hard rock under his back, the breath out of his lungs. She wasn't so worried about his head.

"Oh!" Levy sounded surprised by her success. She appeared, towering over him. "Are you okay?"

Using a quick movement, Gajeel rolled and swiped Levy's legs out from beneath her. Her fall to the ground was the least graceful thing he'd ever seen. Her elbows went out, one digging into his shin, the other into the rock. Coming to rest, she winced and bit her lip hard, her face several shades whiter.

The bottom fell out of Gajeel's stomach. "Shit. Are you okay, Levy?"

She grunted and sat up. "Yeah… just hurt. I think I bruised my elbow."

He swore. "Sorry. I thought…"

"It's okay," Levy told him. "We're training, right? Accidents happen." She touched it, fingers coming away red. Her council coat was torn and damp.

Seeing the colour, Gajeel told himself she was right; it didn't make him feel less guilty, though. "There's a cold stream just over there. Come on, we'll go wash it out."

Levy tried to brush him off. "It's okay."

He was already standing, though, and pulling her to her feet. His hand dropped low to her narrow hip and stayed there as he guided her over the rough terrain, holding her up when she stumbled in the dark night. Levy let him stay close, mostly because she was too paralyzed to push him away. Her skin was chirping, not just in pain. He smelled like metal and sweat and faintly like cologne, but after a day of traveling, that scent was nearly gone. She breathed him in and didn't even pretend all that hard that she wasn't, not so shy when it was just the two of them and there was no light to watch herself stumble through this odd game they'd been playing.

The sound of the river was the first noise in thirty long seconds. It burbled over rocks happily, fed by fresh spring water. It smelled like iron. In the light of the sun the rocks would be red, stained with the mineral, but for now, scent was all Levy had to go off of.

"Here." Gajeel chose an overlarge boulder and guided Levy to its surface like she was hurt much more than she actually was. Levy let it happen, enjoying the attention more than she cared to admit. She watched the dragon slayer pull out a rag from his pocket and wet it. He came back and crouched before her, taking her coat and rolling it up her arm. The air was even colder. Levy shivered. Gajeel leaned into her legs and the chills stopped. Using hands that were infrequently gentle, he levitated her arm and started cleaning it.

"Does it hurt?"

"A little," Levy said.

"It looks like just a scrape."

"I think it's mostly bruised," she agreed.

"You did good, though."

Levy smirked. "Falling?"

"Before that," he said. His compliments were rare. Levy accepted it with a small smile. He dabbed the cut. "I got some bandages in my pack."

"It's probably fine, Gajeel, you don't have to worry about that," Levy told him. The moment was coming where he'd rise from between her legs and the body heat would be gone. She tried to prolong the inevitable. "Thanks for training with me."

"I'm not much good at it." He met her eyes.

"Well, I think you are," Levy said.

"This is the third time you've needed to be patched up," he reminded her.

"We've been doing it for weeks; that's not that bad. And, really, it was falling that did this, not you," she told him. "The only thing you did was teach me how to throw you to the ground." She smiled triumphantly.

He grinned some. "That was a good one." Then he sobered. "Maybe we should ask Lily to take over. He's more patient."

"I want it to be you," she said immediately.

His ember coloured eyes locked on hers. "…Yeah?"

She nodded. Her neck was hot; it was a good thing the darkness hid it. "I like it."

His hands had abandoned her arm to rest beside her hips. "Alright." He started to stand.

Levy surprised herself by grabbing his forearm and holding him in place. She could feel his studs stapled into his skin, raised and warmed by his body heat. "Wait."

Gajeel went right back to the way he was before. Well, mostly. He'd shifted enough that his hands were pressing into her hips, not quite grabbing, but lingering. Levy met his eyes and wetted her lips. He wouldn't be the first man she'd ever kissed, but he'd be the first one she'd geared herself up for so much. His labret rings shone in the moonlight, silver and stark. His eyes were mostly shadowed, but she could see the way they focused on her lips. Before she could think of a way to move next, he leaned into her and pressed their mouths together in a chaste kiss.

Surprise made way for enjoyment. Levy let her eyes flutter shut, and because of that she didn't see the shadow move to her right, she only felt the after-effects of its presence, the deep chill that filled the air, magic, the cold hard ground as she was thrown from her boulder and deposited on her back. In seconds, wind whipped around her and her coat was eviscerated.

"What the fuck?" Gajeel demanded as he went from kissing a girl to kissing nothing but air. He was tasting blood a second later as sharp edged steel swung his way. There was enough time to harden his skin with his scales, but there was nothing to do with the force of the blow. His lip mashed into his teeth. Blood filled his mouth. Off guard and off balance, he fell back and stayed that way for too long, stunned and wondering how close he just came to getting his face cut in half. To dying.

 _Get up and_ fight. The presence was gone, though, as if it had never been there at all. Growling, Gajeel clambered upright. His head spun, his vision hazy. He found Levy sprawled on the ground. Ice shot through his veins. His first thought was that she'd been hurt, her coat was a shredded mess around her, but then he saw her blinking vapidly, just as dazed and confused as he.

"Levy?"

Levy studied the sky, still breathless while she gathered her wits. The pieces were slow in coming together. _We were attacked._ Her blood got pumping. She met Gajeel's eyes. He still peered down at her, looking scared half to death. His mouth was bleeding freely, dripping down his face and soaking his shirt.

She took too long in replying, so Gajeel repeated himself and took a step closer.

Levy grunted. "I'm…" She did a mental tally. Aside from her earlier wounds, she didn't _feel_ injured. "I'm alright, I think." Yet when she patted her side, she found the broken bits of the protection lacrima the magical enforcement unit was gifted. It had done its job, disbursed the attack that befell her, but it was unquestionably ruined now. Useless. She'd never had one shatter on her before.

"What is it?" Gajeel asked. His voice was muffled by the rag he used to mop his face. It only half worked, his mouth was still bleeding too damn much.

"My protection lacrima is broken."

Gajeel's mouth got flat. "What?"

She pulled out a piece of the shattered crystal as proof. It looked benign now, not a powerful piece of spelled stone but something fragile.

Gajeel asked, "Can you stand?"

Levy waited until she was on her feet to confirm. "I'm just shaky." She dropped the piece of lacrima to the ground, then emptied the others from her pocket. It wasn't going to help her anymore. The pieces blazed with the moon.

Gajeel took his own lacrima out and handed it to her. "Here." His hand shook irritatingly. He willed it to be steady. All of his senses were strained, listening, smelling, peering into the deepest shadows. They were alone.

"I can't take that, Gajeel," Levy said when she realized what he was offering her. "It's yours—"

He shoved it into her hand and let go, leaving Levy to either grab it or let it drop. She grabbed it. Satisfied, he stepped back toward their camp, hoping that Lily was alright. Levy caught up with him. He started talking before she could argue anymore about taking his lacrima. "We need to head out, find this person before they realize they didn't kill us."

Levy's heart fluttered like a bird in a cage. If there was one thing to be said about working for the Magic Council, it was that attempts on her life were becoming a startlingly frequent thing. "In the dark?"

"Yeah, Levy, in the dark. We gotta go now while we have the advantage. They think that did us in. We're lucky it didn't. Nearly cut my head in two."

Levy's eyes were again drawn to all the blood. Gajeel didn't complain, but he kept tonguing the hole in his lip. "Do you think it was whoever was doing the magic draining?"

Gajeel spat out a glop of congealing blood. "You know, I hope so." Prepared or not, he was ready for a fight.

* * *

Over much debate, Erza let Wendy take the first watch while she stretched out on a bedroll she yanked from her armoury.

It took the redhead all of five minutes to fall asleep. Wendy sat with her knees tucked into her chest and counted the stars that dotted the sky like diamonds in a duchess' gown. Carla came to her side, her sub-human form on her body.

"You'll use up your magic," Wendy reasoned in a quiet whisper.

"If I don't practice, I'll never be able to hold it," Carla told her, equally silent.

Wendy picked at the rocks littering the ground. They were flecked with fool's gold. It was everywhere in this part of Fiore. The silence between them felt nearly pregnant.

"Wendy."

Wendy knew that tone, even delivered as it was in a covert whisper. Carla was about to go digging for information. Whatever it was, she knew she didn't want to answer. She did anyway, because Carla would expect it. "Yeah?"

" _Did_ some boy kiss you?"

Wendy clenched her teeth tight, remembering Cheria's mouth on hers. The memory brought up a swirl of emotions, pleasure, panic, she was perturbed and pining to go back to that night, relive the moment so she could dissect it. Telling Carla about it would be cathartic. She wouldn't understand, though.

"No, Carla." It wasn't even that far off the truth. Some boy didn't kiss her, it was her best friend, and she wanted to do it again and again, though she didn't know what that meant.

"Well…" Carla hedged. "Was there someone you _wanted_ to kiss?"

She was trying to be understanding and helpful, Wendy knew, but she didn't want to talk about it anymore. "No, Carla. I was just curious about kissing, is all." She gathered her hair over her shoulder. It was knotty from a long day of riding. Her brush was buried in her pack, though, and would likely stay that way until they got to Magnolia tomorrow. _If we can get out of these valleys._

She shoved the thought aside. Raven Canyon was on the opposite side of a rockslide, far enough away that she couldn't see or hear the ravens that lined its steep walls, waiting for things to wander in and die. _When have you known rock to keep out ghosts_? She shivered involuntarily and snuck a little closer to Carla. The cat's eyes were glazed. _Sleepy_ , Wendy thought. As if in confirmation, Carla yawned hugely and lay back so she was facing the stars.

"Very well. You can talk to me, though, Wendy. That's what best friends are for."

Wendy smiled. "I know." Just as soon as she herself figured out what to think about Cheria's kiss, she'd let Carla know. Maybe.

* * *

Boredom made her sleepy. Carla had reverted back to her usual form and was softly snoring. Erza had turned her back to the dragon slayer and breathed deeply. The night was quiet, save for the soft _click clack_ of boots over stone.

It took Wendy a long time to process that. Her eyes came open and she realized she'd been drifting.

The sound was still there, however. _Click clack_. Boots with heels. She shook the sleep from her body and was just about to grab Carla when she was picked up into the air and thrown hard into one of the valley walls. All of the breath exploded from her lungs in a weak _whoosh_. She slid down the wall, knees giving out on her _._

Dazed, Wendy blinked. She was hurt, she just didn't know _where_ yet, or how bad. Her arm was numb, and her neck felt hot. A shadow moved, drawing Wendy's glazed eyes. A woman stepped from the darkness, one with coral coloured hair. She couldn't see her eyes, but Wendy imagined that they were pinched in a mean expression.

The woman crouched so they were level with each other, then spoke in a quiet voice. "A girl falls into the valley, like those wishing to die, but nobody saw it happen, so nobody has to cry." She clutched Wendy's lapel and effortlessly lifted her high. Then she was being dragged recklessly toward the ledge. Beyond was nothing but air and more air. Then the hard ground.

Wendy found her voice. "Erza! Carla!" She had no idea if they heard her or not. She reached for her magic next, though she was slow; always slow. Too much dazedness, too much fear. The ledge came up fast, and suddenly her feet were dangling. The woman met her eyes and held her gaze. They were green, Wendy saw, the green of fresh summer grass. The green of emeralds. Her mouth was painted blue, like flax flower. She opened it to say something else, but only blood came out, encouraged by an iron spike protruding from her chest. Some hit Wendy's cheek, warm and wet and stinking. Wendy gasped with the woman, and then she was falling, like a star right from the sky. Wendy didn't know if she screamed or not. It seemed likely, because that's what scared people did, but her lungs felt locked up tight. Rock whirled past her, faster than she could register.

* * *

In his dream, Natsu's hands were smaller than he remembered. His feet, too. Beneath his bottom was warm sand. He crossed his legs and fingered his big toe. It was coated in dirt and damp. He looked up and saw Zeref. The older boy's hair was wet with river water, his chest bare and smooth, the muscles there visible but yet underdeveloped. Sometimes, though he told mother he wanted to be a scholar and have a good life, unlike the miners and blacksmiths and railway workers that would be chorded with broken backs, Natsu caught Zeref flexing and judging himself in the mirror. Once, after a visit with the baker's daughter, Natsu even saw his brother trying to do a push up.

"Here, but don't swallow the seed." Zeref held out a cherry plumper and redder than Natsu had ever seen before. He took it from his brother and popped it into his mouth. It was sweet, too. Perfect. ' _A good year for cherries_ ,' Valentina had said on their last visit just before she snuck Zeref both a handful of the sweet fruits and a kiss to his cheek. She'd been sure to give Natsu the same treatment, too.

Zeref dropped himself to the ground; beach sand stuck to his wet legs. Sunlight danced through his hair. It was midnight black, like a raven's wing. Like their father's. The older boy held out a cup of dark purple juice. "Here, mother packed this for you."

Natsu took it and swallowed a huge gulp. Grape. It wasn't as sweet as the cherry, and it was warm, but it was still delicious.

"Not so much if you want to go swimming again." Zeref took it away and lay back on the sand. Natsu smacked his lips and lay down, too, too warm and content to be upset that his juice was taken away. They lay in silence, Natsu playing with a small black beetle that had found its way onto the beach. At his back, the river meandered quietly, seemingly eternal. Birds chirped and played, a frog croaked.

A wave of sweat came over Natsu. His stomach cramped. It passed. He forgot about the discomfort just as soon as it wasn't an immediate obstacle. "Can we play all day, or do you have to study again?"

"No studying today," Zeref replied. "Tomorrow, though, for my exam."

"What's an exam?"

"Where they test your knowledge," Zeref explained.

"So you know how smart you are?"

"Something like that," Zeref agreed.

"What do you learn?" University was just this _thing_ that took up his brother's time, but Zeref seemed to like it, so Natsu wanted to, too.

"Natural sciences," Zeref said. Natsu scrunched up his face in disinterest, so he clarified. "Magic." And _there_ was the wonder he'd come to expect.

"Can you do magic, too?" Their mother could make the ragdolls she sewed dance, but she didn't do it very often. Her magic wasn't very strong.

"Not yet," Zeref admitted, "But one day..."

Natsu's smile was dimmed. The grape juice was heavy in his stomach.

"What is it?" Zeref asked.

Natsu sat up, sweaty and suddenly ill. "I don't feel good."

Zeref's mouth puckered in a frown. "You look a little peaky." He too sat up. Just as he was reaching for Natsu's forehead, Natsu's grape juice revisited, soaking them both. Zeref didn't get mad. He didn't get disgusted, either. He wetted their towel and used it to wipe Natsu down enough that they could get home, then carried him the whole way, leaving their things on the river bank.


	13. Chapter 13

It seemed to Erza that there was an equation to her life. For every moment of happiness she was granted, she was dealt a lifetime of misery. Or at least, that's how she felt, sitting upright in her bedroll with Wendy's scared cry ringing in her ear. She found her in time only to watch the dragon slayer cascade over the ledge, thrown by a woman that seemed like more shadow and bone than flesh and blood. Except... She did bleed, from a thick spike jammed through her chest. She warbled, teetering on the valley ledge. The spike disappeared and the woman took to falling, following Wendy, both as silent as a ghost.

Another yell jarred Erza from stillness, this one high-pitched, hollered in denial. Carla. Carla who was scrabbling from the rock knoll she'd chosen for rest. Carla who would never ever get there in time. Carla, who was leaping over the ledge after Wendy anyway.

"No!" Erza's feet were beneath her, running clumsily, for she too was possessed by the need to do something, anything, even if it was futile. Her toe caught on a rock. The fall to the ground was brutal. Her tooth jammed through her lip and her finger broke beneath her weight. She barely felt it. Up again, blood streaming down her face, finger crooked, she ran hard towards the ledge. What she hoped to accomplish, she didn't know, but _something_. Steps from her goal, something solid wrapped around her body and pulled her up startlingly short. The breath burst from her lungs. Off balance, she hit the ground again, dazed.

"Erza," hashed a familiar voice, one that was raw with exertion. Erza barely looked at Gajeel, too numb to be shocked by his presence.

Above, Carla rose into the air, a blob of white in the dark mid-summer sky. She was alone.

* * *

With a picnic table beneath his ass, his booted feet up on the scarred bench, Laxus jammed a cigarette into his mouth and sucked in a huge puff, then breathed deeply. The smoke coiled in his chest, thick and acrid. He used to cough, but this was a habit he'd picked up after his grandfather went missing the year before, and he'd had plenty of time to punish his body into believing it felt good. He used to do it as an excuse to get out and clear his head—typically no one wanted to be around him when he was smoking, smelled too bad, he guessed—but now he did it because it felt good. Well, he still enjoyed the quiet, too, to be completely honest.

He blew out the smoke and tipped his beer into his mouth. It was strong and dark. Usually he liked it like that, but tonight it stuck to his palate in a way that made him want to shiver.

Behind him, the back door to the pub they'd stopped at for dinner opened. Sound and light bled into the night. It diffused just as quickly as soon as the door slammed shut. Laxus checked over his shoulder, catching sight of a full-figured woman sashaying his way, backlit by the dingy lamp above the pub's exit. The wind blew, grabbing her dress and throwing it around her legs. Her scent drifted to him, rose water. Interest piqued, he leaned back to face her and nodded his head in greeting while he scoured his mind for a good pickup line, something not too cheesy, but something that would get his intent across.

"Hey." _Hey_? _Lame,_ he scolded himself and thought hard.

For the weak greeting, he so faintly saw her cheeks pull up in a smile. She waved, still approaching. Her hair was ablaze by the light behind her, some indistinguishable pale colour. He couldn't see clearly, too night-blind, but she was clear enough that he knew she was heavy on the asset side of things, nicely shaped. They could have a lot of fun, he decided.

"Got someone waiting for you inside?" He took another drag, imagining he looked cool as fuck.

"Well, Lisanna and Elfman," came Mira's innocent voice.

Laxus choked on his smoke as it all became clear. "Mira, what the fuck?"

Her steps faltered. "Oh, no, you did not just try to hit on me, Laxus."

He fumbled, struggling to recover. "No."

"You little liar." She chirruped happily. "Ha. That's sweet. I knew you missed me."

"I knew it was you," he lied. "I was just messing with you."

"Yeah," she snorted. "Right."

Laxus rolled his eyes, determining that there was only one way to put the matter to rest. He pretended like it wasn't happening. "What's going on?"

"Oh, other than your undying love for me?"

"Seriously, Mira."

"I can't help it, my world's changed." She fake-swooned. "Laxus Dreyar, not actually just a manslut, but someone with a _heart_. Or," she sobered, looking thoughtful. "Were you just trying to get under my skirt? What a trick. I almost fell for it, and I've seen a lot. Good work."

Laxus glowered. "Gee, the demon thing really is a fucking switch for you, huh? Ever had anyone tell you you're crazy as shit?"

Her smile was devilish. "Oh, only a few. They were all begging for a chance to apologize after, though."

Laxus _harrumphed_ and went back to smoking.

"That will kill you, you know?" Mira asked. She closed the rest of the distance between them and clambered up on the bench beside him. She still smelled nice. He tried to think of all the things he hated about her. That cheerful little smile, for one, the one that hid her mayhem and darkness.

"So will talking."

"You're grouchy," Mira commented.

Laxus scrubbed his face one-handed then gave her a sideways look. "You out here for a reason?"

"Just wondering where you slunk off to," she said airily.

"Well, here I am, you can go back in now." A look at that mulish expression and he knew _that_ was a losing battle.

"Laxus," Mira said without the smile. "I wanted to talk to you about this rumor that Master Makarov is back."

"What about it?"

She gathered up a roll of her dress and slid the smooth fabric through her fingers. "It could be just that—a rumor. Lisanna was excited earlier, that's all, and I think she was really hopeful—"

"Yeah," he said gruffly. "Or it could be true."

She looked at him sadly. "I want you to have hope, but I also don't want you to be crushed if it's not true."

"I'm not going to be crushed."

"It's bothering you, I can see it," Mira said. "You've been worried about him. Your methods of dealing with it are maybe unhealthy—I hope you used condoms with those girls—"

He gave her the darkest look she'd ever seen. Mira hurried on. "I'm just saying—"

"Look, I get it, he's been missing for a year, he's old as fuck, no one's seen him or heard from him. Yeah, I know the chances of him just suddenly deciding to reunite the guild are low. I know he might be dead and I know someone might just be yanking our chain to get us here. _I get it, Mira_."

She clammed up.

Laxus took another drag off his cigarette. "Or," he blew the smoke out of his nose. "He might be fine."

"Yeah, Laxus—"

He bowled over her. "I thought you with your fucking go-lucky Miss Brightside attitude would appreciate the sentiment. You're supposed to be the balloon, Mira, not the deadweight dragging me down. Stop telling me it's probably a lie, because I already _know_ , I've been saying the same shit to myself for months. I need someone that's going to feed me bullshit with a real pretty smile, that way I'm inclined to believe it."

She pressed her lips together, obviously on the verge of saying something cutting. The urge passed in a weak expel of breath. Her arms were around Laxus' throat before he could fathom what was happening. He tensed, waiting for pain. When none came he realized she was just trying to hug him.

"Mira—"

She squeezed tighter. "I'm sorry, Laxus. I'm sure he'll be fine."

He patted her back awkwardly, aware of all of her touching him. "Okay, okay. Gee. Let go."

She came away, eyes damp. "I miss him, too."

Laxus turned his eyes out into the night, neither confirming nor denying. He smoked his cigarette to the filter.

* * *

Morning light streamed through dingy drapes, yet it wasn't the warmth of the sun that led Juvia out of sleep, but the unpleasant sound of the bathroom door slamming closed, followed by Gray's painful retch. She winced each time he gagged, first clasping her hands over her ears to block out the sound. When that failed, she got out of bed, fixed her nighty, and went to the bathroom door. Tapping didn't win her an invitation to enter. She imagined Gray was too sick to respond, anyway. She took the door in hand and invited herself in.

Naked save for his shorts, Gray sat on the stained and scratched tile floor, legs folded while he propped his elbows on the toilet bowl. He was greener than Juvia's nail polish, and sweat-slicked.

"Gray-sama—"

He groaned and flushed the toilet. "Get out, Juvia."

"You're sick."

He gave her a look that could have peeled paint. "Just give me a few."

Juvia opened her mouth to add something else. Gray turned from her and threw up another bout of whisky. She sighed and left the way she came, closing the bathroom door behind herself.

* * *

Natsu came awake with a huge gulp of air, jarred roughly from his dream. All he smelled was perfume, cheap strawberry shampoo and alcohol. It was pungent, everywhere. _Lucy_. He breathed deeply, eager to get the smell of Zeref out of his nose. Mint plant and Valentina's cherries. He huffed deeper and found he was right, Lucy's scent helped to block out his dream. Still, it was easy to remember the exact feeling of the sickness that had overtaken him, his curdling stomach, the sweat. And the comfort of Zeref lifting him from the ground and carting him all the way home.

 _Don't._

He breathed out and encouraged his eyes to open. Looking at the real world was therapeutic. Seeing where he was helped remind him of _who_ he was. Not Natsu Dragneel, nighttime brother of Zeref, but Natsu Dragneel, Fairy Tail's fire dragon slayer. Lucy was still squished beneath him, her breast in his hand, filling it and then some. She'd fallen asleep hard enough that she hadn't moved all night. She looked peaceful, lips parted in a soft sigh, eyes lightly bruised.

As if she felt him studying her, her breathing changed, her eyes fluttered, black lashes on her pale cheek. Gold-shot toffee, that's what her eyes always reminded him of. Except today, those gold-shot eyes were also blood-shot. Approximately five seconds passed before she realized that she was hungover, grossly so. Then she groaned and pressed one hand to her eyes, the other trapped beneath his body.

"Hey," Natsu greeted.

"Mm..." she grunted. "Gods. I feel like shit."

"Maybe you shouldn't drink so much then," Happy's nagging voice came from the couch.

Lucy took her hand away from her eyes and lifted herself up on her elbows. "Stop, Happy."

Natsu, still very aware of palming her breast, released her reluctantly and cursed Happy for his presence, though he didn't think Lucy was in much of a mood to be pawed. He wondered if she remembered the kiss. Then he wondered where to proceed from there. Was it something that they'd continue to do? Or was it a one-time thing?

Lucy skewered him with a look when she could no longer ignore his body pressing into her, as if to say _really?_

Natsu inched his hips back as well as he could, wanting to point out that she didn't mind last night. He valued the possibility of doing it again so much that he found it within himself to be silent. "Good sleep?"

"I guess." _If you could call it that._ It was more like a pass out.

Lucy puffed out a breath and wriggled from beneath him. Realizing what she wore seconds before she got from the sheets, she gave Happy a look. The cat was leaned over the back of the couch, looking absolutely uninterested in taking his eyes away. Resigned if only because both her bladder and stomach felt full, Lucy stood. Her panties were askew, as was her bra strap. It nicely complimented her bedhead if she was going for the classy one-night-stand look. She padded through the silent room to the washroom, hating herself every single step of the way.

She slammed the door closed. Happy's voice whispered through the room. Lucy couldn't hear what he said, but she heard Natsu's sharp, "Shut up, Happy," just before she dropped to her knees and let the toilet know what her body thought of the abuse she gave it.

* * *

Natsu was pulling on his pants when the door sounded. Still shirtless, he answered it to a frazzled looking Juvia.

"What's up?"

"Do you have aspirin?" the water mage asked. "Gray-sama isn't feeling well."

"I told him to stop after Lucy went in," Happy muttered. "But did he listen? Nope. Serves him right."

Juvia's expression pinched. She looked away from the cat instead of inquiring, though.

"Yeah," Natsu said. "I got something." He went for his pack on the ground.

"How was he when you two went out last night?" Juvia asked suddenly.

Natsu looked up from his bag. "What do you mean?"

Juvia shrugged. "Did he say anything? About his mark, I mean."

Natsu shook his head. "Why?"

She admitted, "It's been bothering him ever since we got into Magnolia." She wanted to add something else, Natsu could tell. He waited and waited for it. Nothing came. He shook out four aspirin then came back and dropped them into Juvia's hand. "I'm going to go back to that murder site to see if I can find anything. You should ask Gray if he wants to tag along."

"He's pretty sick," Juvia told him.

Natsu found he was actually sort of relieved anyway after his conversation with Lucy last night. He didn't want the opportunity to ask Gray the same questions he'd asked the blonde. He didn't want to know why they were acting the way they were. That's what he told himself, anyway. He was _burning_ up with his unanswered questions.

The bathroom door opened and Lucy came out. She was damp haired and wrapped in one of the ratty thread-bare towels. Even exhausted and sick she drew the dragon slayer's eye and kept it. He remembered her hand on his cheek, his neck, her lips on his. He imagined kissing her again.

Lucy's eyes lifted and met not Natsu's but Juvia's. This time, the celestial mage was _positive_ she didn't misunderstand the look in Juvia's eye. She was furious. And jealous. And the worst bit was, Lucy wasn't even sure she shouldn't be. She wanted to cry or sink to the floor or reassure the water mage. She did none of those things.

"Thanks for the aspirin. I'll let him know what you asked, Natsu." Juvia left in a swirl of indignation, closing the door with finality. Lucy winced, Natsu looked on thoughtfully, Happy seemed like he had it all figured out. Maybe he did.

* * *

Gray had moved from hanging over the toilet to resting his head against the bathroom wall. He breathed shallowly, trying to smell anything but acrid bile. It was a losing battle, it was in his nose, coated his throat. His head felt foggy, heavy with dehydration. He _knew_ that to feel better he needed water, but he didn't think he could keep it down just then.

The bathroom door opened again and Juvia came through with a handful of aspirin. She looked both concerned and at the end of a short rope. "Here, Gray-sama."

Gray checked to make sure that his latest round of sickness was flushed, then took the pills from Juvia and popped them into his mouth dry. He chewed them; the taste was awful, but not so awful that he stopped. "Thanks."

"Thank Natsu."

"You went there?" Talking was hard, but he managed.

Juvia's eyes flashed. "Yes. Natsu wanted you to go back to the crime scene."

Gray groaned. "Not gonna happen. Not any time soon."

She harrumphed and said what she was dying to. "Lucy's also hungover, just so you know."

Gray winced.

Suspicions confirmed, Juvia's stomach plummeted. "You were out drinking with her?"

He shook his head, then, caught in a lie, nodded. "I mean," he explained, when Juvia's anger became a palpable thing, "She just showed up and hung out for a bit."

"Long enough to get drunk." Juvia's tongue was a knife.

Gray pressed his fingers into his eyes. "Yeah, I guess…"

She dug her fingers into her leg. "I know you don't like it when I get jealous, Gray-sama, but what do you expect me to think when you've snuck off to spend a night drinking with her while I'm asleep in our bed?"

"That's not what happened."

"Oh?"

"I was on my own."

"Until you weren't."

"I didn't ask her to show," Gray said. "She just did. I would have been happy to spend the night by myself."

Juvia snorted. "Yeah. You could have sent her away, or left, but I bet you didn't even try."

"Juvia—"

She talked over him. "Did you spend your time drinking and telling her all the secrets you won't tell me?"

His irritation was a persistent thing, steadily rising. "There wasn't any secret telling."

Tears made pools of Juvia's eyes. Her arms went around her middle like she was trying to hold everything in place. "Just be truthful."

"What fucking secret would I have to tell Lucy, huh?" Gray asked roughly.

Juvia didn't flinch; she'd thought this through, suspected all of his responses. "You probably told her all about how your mark was bugging you."

He fought the urge to press his fingers into his eyes. "Why would I? Not only is that stupid, my mark is _fine._ "

Juvia's sadness turned into a scowl. _"_ That's another lie. I know it's been bad."

"It's—"

"You're always taking aspirin, and grabbing at it, and drinking whenever you can."

"Sure," Gray admitted. "It's been pissing me off, but what do you want me to say, Juvia? That I've had a fucking migraine since we got to Magnolia? That my skin is _crawling?_ That I wanted to stay the fuck away but _you_ insisted on coming here? You _know_ all of that. What else?" he asked, feeling confrontational. "What other secrets have we supposedly been chatting about?"

Her chin warbled; she still met his eyes. "Probably about why you didn't want to come back."

He would have stumbled if he wasn't still partially drunk. "I didn't want to come back because there's nothing here! Fairy Tail is dead, just like I said. What else?"

Feeling lunatic and brave, Juvia continued. "Maybe you and Lucy talked about why you won't look at her. I bet that was a nice conversation."

Gray finally found something capable of making his mouth slam shut.

Feeling sick, Juvia said, "You think I don't notice, Gray-sama, but I do."

Gray recovered. "There isn't anything to notice."

"You treat her differently."

He shook his head. "Lucy and I are the same as we've ever been."

Juvia's cheeks were suddenly wet. "You're in love with her, aren't you?"

"What?" _You shouldn't even be surprised,_ he told himself, Juvia used to always be on his case about this girl or that. _Except she never cried then._ This was different. A good portion of the fight went out of him. "I'm not in love with Lucy, Juvia."

The sobbing kept on, unhindered. "Stop _lying_!"

 _I'm too fucking hungover for this shit_ , is what Gray _wanted_ to say. In actuality, he stood and went to the blue haired water mage. She was stiff when he first gathered her in for a hug, but within seconds she collapsed, resting her entire weight on him while sobs wracked her body.

"I'm not in love with Lucy," Gray repeated. His chest was all knots.

"Then _why_ won't you look at her? Why didn't you want to come back to Magnolia? Why did you sneak off with her and come back drunk?"

"Juvia—it was just a _coincidence_. She was _there_. I didn't ask her to meet me or anything." He might as well not have spoken at all, for all the sobbing she still did. "Juvia," Gray tried again. "Come on, cut it out." It was futile. Not really great for standing, Gray guided them to the floor, where they sat with their backs against the rickety vanity. "Come on."

Even angry with him, her fingers curled into his shoulder, her nose went into his clavicle. Her face was hot against his skin, each tear she cried feeling like molten lava, scalding him for his sins. _You could tell her now._ And Juvia would cry herself to death. _Coward._ But when she was so beside herself with only suspicion, what would she do with truth? He was silent and told himself it was because he didn't want to hurt her.

"Juvia, please—"

Juvia summoned language enough to spit out, "Why her?"

"Gods." He'd hoped they were past that. " _Seriously_?"

She was relentless. "What is it about her that's so great?"

"Nothing! I'm _not_ in love with Lucy," he insisted. "Fuck."

"Then why were you drinking with her?"

"I was drinking with myself!" he exclaimed, voice louder than planned. "I told you, she just showed up."

" _Why_?"

"I _don't know;_ she was out in the hall when I was?" He struggled to make his voice even again. "Just let it go. I'm not sneaking around trying to spend time with her behind your back. I promise."

Juvia's tears slowed. "But—"

"Don't, Juvia. Just let it go, okay? Lucy… there isn't anything there." His guilty conscience tried to trip him. He stood tall beneath its overladen blame. Lucy had been a one-time thing. A mistake. "I promise." He willed her to believe him.

Juvia sniffed and asked in a more monotone voice, "When we left Fairy Tail, you didn't want her to go with you instead?"

This time, truth was on his side. "No." Her chest stopped its restless convulsing. He petted her hair, sensing the comedown. "Just forget about this shit."

"That night—"

"I never asked anything of her," he said firmly. _Is that as close as you can come to a confession?_ Pathetic.

"But—"

"Juvia, you're all I want to think about now. I promise."

Juvia settled, but his words would come back to her in the days to come.

* * *

Natsu dragged a shirt over his head while Lucy looked through her clothes and stole furtive glances at him. His hair stuck up at odd angles, mussed with sleep, his cheeks needed a good shave. Her heart panged with something like enjoyment. She quashed the feeling, scolding herself for loving the way he looked. For loving the way he felt. For wanting to lay beneath him not just drunk, but sober, too. It wasn't _supposed_ to be like this.

Only when she watched him rub his palms (nervously?) on his pants did she notice she was staring.

She looked away just as Natsu said, "I'm going back to the crime scene." He didn't look like he particularly wanted to.

Glad for something productive and logical to talk about, she said, "Let me get dressed."

"Don't bother," Natsu said. "I won't be long."

Lucy stalled. "I want to come."

"It might be dangerous." He wouldn't meet her eye as he said it, choosing to drop his gaze and yank his socks on.

"So what?" Even hungover, she didn't want to sit in her room like a princess while Natsu looked for their killer.

"Lucy..."

"We did lots of dangerous things before," she told him. "You never cared then."

He looked like he swallowed a sour grape. "What if you're attacked?"

"No one is going to attack us in the middle of the day." Murders were a nighttime endeavor.

"That girl was dead—there's no coming back from that. This is serious."

"I know that," Lucy said. "I get it."

But she didn't. He shared a look with Happy, remembering the blood and panties and bare breasts.

"What the hell does that mean?" Lucy asked.

"What?" Natsu asked.

"That look, what the hell is that?"

"Nothing."

She shook her head in irritation and went back to her clothing pile, grabbing things at random.

"Lucy, just let me check it out first, okay?"

The look Lucy gave him was downright scathing. "I'm not sitting here while you take all the risks."

"Do I look like a blonde chick?" Natsu asked. "They're not going to be interested in me, so it's not much risk."

Lucy huffed indignantly. "You know no one is going to attack us in broad daylight."

"Probably not," he conceded, "But you're not feeling good anyway. Just hang out in here for a bit." He looked reluctant again but said, "Maybe go see what's up with Juvia and Gray—"

"No," Lucy said shortly.

"You're not staying by yourself."

"You're right. I'm coming." She sorted out her clothes. "You ditched me here last time. I'm not letting you do it again."

"Lucy—"

"No."

"I'll stick around if you want to hang out with me, Lucy," Happy said.

Lucy glowered. "No offense, Happy, but I don't want to stick around here at all. It doesn't matter who's with me."

The cat looked miffed.

"Come on, Luce—"

She gave him her best, 'I'm going to beat you if you continue,' look.

Natsu threw his hands into the air. "Fine, alright. Get dressed. I'll wait."

" _Thank_ you." Placated, Lucy took her pile of clothes to the washroom. With the door closed, Natsu looked to Happy.

"Natsu," Happy hissed quietly, reading his friend well. "Don't. We promised her we wouldn't take off."

Without a word, Natsu shoved his boots on his feet and left, closing the door quietly, telling himself every step of the way that it was for Lucy's _benefit_. It helped with the guilt.

* * *

Lucy knew as soon as she opened the bathroom door and saw Happy wringing his tail dejectedly that Natsu left without her.

"Seriously?"

"Sorry, Lucy," Happy said, looking like he meant it. "You know how he is. He thinks he's protecting you."

 _Protecting?_ Lucy fought to block out the voice in her head that chirped _he left because he doesn't think you can handle it. He left because he doesn't trust you'll be strong enough._ If she could beat that mean voice to a bloody death she would have long, long ago. It didn't _help_ anything, really, it only served to make her miserable, and she'd had _enough_ of that.

"Do you want to play cards or something?" Happy asked.

Lucy went to the dresser holding her things and grabbed her boots from beside the stand. "No." She shoved her feet into the soft leather.

"What are you doing?" Happy asked.

"Going out, isn't that obvious?" Lucy questioned. She felt too hungover for so much action, but she would _not_ just let Natsu lie and wander off.

"What about—"

"I don't care."

"Lucy, those girls—"

"I _don't care_ ," Lucy maintained. "I can handle it."

"But Lucy—"

"Either stay here or come, Happy, but I'm leaving with or without you." Lucy grabbed her keys. One in particular was hot. Reaching for her magic, she tugged Loke out of the celestial realm. He was coming anyway.

The spirit appeared, wearing his typical suit. The glasses were gone. "What's going on?"

Lucy summoned her resolve. "We're going to go solve these murders, you and me."

"What about Natsu and Gray and—"

"Natsu's a dumbass and is already gone, Gray's got his head in the toilet, and—well, I'm sure you can guess the rest," she said shortly, aware of Happy's curious gaze.

Loke puffed up his cheeks.

Happy tried to reason. "Loke, you can't. It's really not safe."

"We'll be fine," Lucy said shortly.

"You don't know that."

Loke looked to his master, torn. She trembled, really gearing herself up for this, like she wasn't sure if she could do it, but she wanted to badly enough that she was pushing herself into it. He recognized her trying to regain her confidence. _This will be good for her._ "We'll be fine, Happy. We'll just get some information, right, Lucy? And if we stumble onto something big, well..."

"We'll handle it," Lucy said, relieved he didn't fight her. "Come or stay, Happy."

The cat grumbled. "I should tell Natsu where we're going. He'll be worried if he comes back and we're all gone. I'll get him and meet up with you guys after?"

"Sure," Loke replied when Lucy didn't.

Lucy did a once-over of all of her gear. Keys—room and celestial—whip, bag with her water bottle, wallet, eyeliner and chap stick. That was everything. Satisfied, she set upon the same course Natsu had, not sure where she'd start looking, just glad that the decision to do so was made.


	14. Chapter 14

Desiccated and brittle sticks didn't make good splints, at least, not better than Porlyusica's, but Erza withstood the makeshift dressing, thankful that they even found anything acceptable in the barren wasteland that was the valley they were trapped inside. It was all rocks and hard ground. They'd found the shrunken shrub by chance, Carla's keen eye picking it out amongst all of the boulders.

The only reason Erza had even agreed to medical treatment was so someone could help Gajeel carry Wendy back on the stretcher they'd made out of Queen Morro's blanket and the leather girth of her saddle. Maybe Gajeel could have done it all by himself, slinging Wendy over his shoulder, but by the end of it he would have been tired, and it was a lot of strain on Wendy's injuries. The other option was to tie the young dragon slayer to her horse and travel that way, but Erza didn't dare, worried that Wendy would slip and fall. That wasn't the extent of it, though. Erza worried that her head would bleed more, or that there were broken bones other than the ones she was aware of. Wendy hadn't come awake to tell them of her wounds. She just lay there looking ashen and near dead, her chest rising and falling shallowly. The bandage Levy had managed to scare up was wrapped tightly around Wendy's temples. The back had dotted through with blood again. Seeing that colour made a tight knot form in Erza's chest. She could barely breathe.

"Are you certain there were no signs of the creature?" It was the fifth time she asked Gajeel.

This time when he answered, he was abrupt. "Erza, I told you before, when I got down there Wendy was sprawled out at the bottom and that thing was _gone_. There was a blood smear. That's all."

"I _watched_ it get impaled," Erza fumed. "There is no way it just _disappeared_ after suffering a wound like that and falling all that way. Even if it _could_ have crawled off, it wouldn't have gotten far."

"I did several circuits," Lily said. "I didn't see anything, though it was dark."

"The sun is up now." That was being generous. It was overcast and as dark as pre-dawn, a severe storm threatening. "We should look again," Erza determined.

"Why?" Gajeel asked. "We're already twenty kilometers from where we started."

The wind blew, bringing with it the storm's first cold front. _Isn't that perfec_ t, Erza thought bitterly. She had nothing to cover Wendy with, other than Shadow Heart's blanket, and that would be soaked through in no time, if that ominous green hew the clouds carried was any indication.

"Don't you want to catch her attacker?" Erza bit out, restless for something to do.

"Of course I do," Gajeel responded.

"Then we should _look_." Maybe she was just feeling contrary.

Levy sighed, sensing an approaching time when she'd have to play moderator. Lily came to the rescue.

"Everyone just calm down. We'll get out of this place sooner and get Wendy help without you two bickering."

Erza clammed up tight, knowing he was right.

Levy touched Erza's wrist gently. "It'll be alright, Erza. Wendy will be fine."

Erza took to tonguing her bottom lip instead of answering, feeling the deep hole her tooth left behind.

"Why do you think that thing went after Wendy?" Gajeel wondered.

"She's our healer," Carla said automatically. She'd been silent up until then, in her humanoid form walking beside Wendy's crude stretcher; the dragon slayer's bruised and abraded hand in her own. "If I wanted to cripple a party, that's how I would proceed." She offered the advice in a cool, collected manner, her voice monotone and without feeling.

Erza saw through the ruse. Carla was worried enough that when she tried to have breakfast that morning, she'd thrown it all back up behind a small rock wall. She was stoic, however, and hid her concern well.

The first fat raindrop fell from the sky and plunked off Erza's armour.

Levy blew out a breath from her nose. "It's raining."

 _Of course._ Erza choked back an irate howl just in time for the sky to open up.

"Let's find some shelter," Lily said.

The redhead wanted to keep going—she wanted _out_ of this cursed valley—but she saw the way his eyes kept sliding to Wendy slung between her and Gajeel and knew that he had her best interests in mind.

"I'll fly up and look for a place to hole up for a bit," Lily offered, birthing wings before any of them could say anything. He was gone, a black blot in the black sky. Erza's feet shuffled over the granite ground, the soles of her boots sliding irksomely. Her finger ached even though she wasn't flexing it around the stretcher's handle. She persevered, one foot after the other.

Lily returned just as lightning cracked across the sky. He jolted; his ears went flat and every piece of fur, despite its clumped and damp nature, stood erect. "This way. There's a small cave in the rocks just over this ridge." He pointed north. They'd have to backtrack and alter their course slightly, but what other choice did they have?

* * *

Rain rushed from the sky and hit the ground with such intensity that the sound was deafening. Numbly, Erza watched it hit the granite and bounce back into the air with incredible force. At her back, she heard Levy and Gajeel get settled on the ground with their immobile passenger. Reaching into her pack, Levy produced a damp towel and started patting Wendy dry. Soon she'd use her solid script to heat up rocks to keep everyone warm.

"I'm going to change her bandages again. Her head's still bleeding."

And how much could she bleed, really, Erza wondered, she was just small. Soon Wendy would have no blood left. She refused to look over her shoulder and see the pale glean to Wendy's skin. It would only make exsanguination all the more plausible. _Acceptance won't change the outcome_ , she thought bitterly.

"I'll help," Carla said automatically.

Feeling useless, Erza stepped toward the rain.

"Where are you going, Erza?" Lily asked.

"I'm just going to check the perimeter," she replied. "I'll return."

"Be cautious."

With Lily's warning jarring around in her head, Erza ventured into the artificial night.

She was soaked through in seconds flat; there was no end to this mammoth storm, the sky black in every direction. Coming around the side of the small cave, she stepped up on a precipice and overlooked the world. From her vantage point she could see Raven's Canyon, the wide gouge in the land that would put them properly in the direction of Magnolia's gates. The way they went now was the long way, a road clustered with dips and falls, valleys of varying widths, and gouges into the earth so deep, she couldn't see where they ended.

Hands closed around her shoulders. Erza's heart went into her throat. A sword was in her hand before she gave it much thought. She whirled and attacked without mercy, blade hungry for blood. Metal squealed on metal. Her sword was pushed wide, then it was flying into the gully below where it tinked and clanged off the stone. The sound was lost to the rain. Another weapon came into her grasp, this sword curved and sharp enough to split steel.

"Stop, Erza."

It was the sound of his voice that saved him, for rational thought was nearly gone. Erza blinked rain from her eye and squinted into the dark. Steps away, Jellal was hidden inside a deep hood, most of his face covered. He yanked down the bottom of his mask, revealing everything but his forehead. The left side of his cloak was in tatters, his metal bracer the only thing that saved him from being sliced in two.

"What's wrong?" He wasn't furious that he'd been attacked, of course not. Just worried. "What happened?"

Erza swallowed the scared lump in her throat—fear for Wendy, fear of what she nearly did—and went to him, dropping her sword to the ground and crushing him to her body in a tight hug. He smelled like juniper and rainwater.

"Erza—what—"

"Wendy's been attacked," she said when she was able.

"Attacked? By who?"

"Some creature that roams these valleys." Briefly, she explained everything. "She needs a healer," she surmised finally. "I don't think she'll wake otherwise. If she even survives the trip back to Magnolia."

Jellal pushed her sopping bangs back and laid a kiss against her forehead. "I'll get word to Cheria."

Erza's world slowed. "Cheria?"

"Lamia Scale's god slayer," he explained patiently,

"Cheria can heal her." It was as if she'd forgotten.

Jellal nodded. "Yes."

All the tumblers fell into place. Excitement budded in Erza's heart. Hope. "I'll come with you to make sure you get there."

"And who will take Wendy to Magnolia?" he countered.

"Gajeel and Levy are here, along with Lily. She'll be safe with them. We'll move quickly just you and I," the redhead finished.

Jellal shook his head. "What will you tell the council if they know you travel with me?"

"Council?" Erza repeated. "They won't—"

"Both Gajeel and Levy are members of the Magic Council now, Erza," Jellal said.

"What?"

"Yes."

"How would you know that?"

He looked out over her head at the bleary shapes of rocks. "I make it my business to know who sits in the Council's seats."

Her mouth went dry despite all the falling rain. "They—they didn't say anything." Not that there was much time to say anything, but it felt like a secret and the secret felt like a betrayal, though why she couldn't say. It was hard being in love with an outlaw.

"Besides," Jellal said, "I have the rest of Crime Sorciere waiting for me at the northern peak of Rose's Valley. We'll move quickly and safely."

She knew he was right. It didn't stop her from wanting to join, the need to be in charge—to make sure things were done right and quickly—nearly overpowering.

"Trust me, Erza," Jellal said. "I would never let anything happen to Wendy, not if I could help it. I'm in a position to get word to Cheria quickly. Keep travelling as you were, they may need your sword yet."

Erza buckled, rationality winning a solid foothold. "Be careful travelling. This creature was stabbed through the chest and survived. It's powerful, and elusive. Wendy didn't even have a chance to use a spell before it threw her from the cliff."

"I'll be careful," he promised. His hand went to her cheek and cradled it. Each of them was soaked through. "This was not how I imagined finding you in these valleys."

Erza closed her eyes and breathed shallowly. She was eager for him to leave but also wanted him to stay. "Will you return with Cheria?"

He wavered. "If I can."

What he meant was _, if the Council isn't waiting to arrest me_. Erza stole a kiss and put into it everything she wanted to say, unable to find the proper words. His hands squeezed her hips and then he was gone, disappeared as quickly as he'd arrived. Erza watched him scale the rocks into the valley pit. She lost sight of him well before the black of the storm claimed him; he was no more than a wraith.

* * *

Seagulls wailed overhead, their cry so piercing that Lucy squinted and winced. What she wouldn't give for a pair of sunglasses. Aspirin and water would have to do. She was on her forth pill; it hadn't touched her headache and her stomach was so full of water, she could die.

"Looks like you had a good night," Loke mused from her side.

The blonde gave him a flat look.

"You and Gray?" he asked when she offered no explanation.

She dredged up a sigh along with the will to speak. "He said he wanted to try to be friends again."

"So you got together and got smashed? I hate to say it, but that's what got you into this mess," Loke said.

It didn't sound like he hated it at all; to Lucy he sounded righteous. She tried not to be annoyed. "Yeah, I know. It just seemed easier this way. Like I knew what to say."

Loke scrubbed his hair, making it stand on end. "What a mess."

Lucy changed the subject. "So. Where are we going to look for this murderer?"

Loke looked like he wanted to pursue the subject more but was gracious enough to let it drop. "Detective doesn't come as part of my celestial spirit training, sorry."

She stuck out her bottom lip. "You're telling me you're not going to be any help?"

"Well, I didn't say _that_ ," Loke said. "I just think you know as well as I do."

Lucy huffed. "Okay." She thought hard. Being a reporter for the better part of the year helped some. A lot, actually. _Think._ "Alright. Let's start from the bottom and work our way up. We'll dig up as much information as we can on those first murders. They happened the second night we were in Magnolia—that we know of, anyway, right?"

"Yeah." Loke looked uncomfortable.

"What?" Lucy was reluctant to ask.

He shrugged. "I don't know. Just thinking about Happy, I guess."

"Happy?"

"About what he said before we left," Loke clarified.

"Uh," Lucy grunted. "He and Natsu have been super weird and super cryptic about this whole damn thing."

Loke said, "What if those killings were a warning or something?"

Lucy raised a thin brow.

"I know it sounds weird, but I keep thinking, what if someone heard that Fairy Tail is getting back together and they're trying to scare you and Natsu off by killing girls that superficially look like you?"

"Seriously?" Lucy said. "That's weak."

"It's only a thought," Loke said.

"Why choose girls that look like me and not guys that look like Natsu?" Lucy countered, partially because she didn't want to think about someone targeting women that looked like her.

"I don't know about you, but I don't know a lot of pink haired guys," Loke said.

"Well, that seems pretty far-fetched to me. I think we should keep thinking," Lucy said.

Loke huffed. "I don't know, Lucy. Shouldn't we think of everything if we're doing a real investigation?"

"Which means not discounting other stuff yet, either," Lucy said. Her heart tried to beat faster with Loke's words. ' _Do you have your keys_ ,' Gray chirped in her head again. And Natsu's ' _keep your keys on you, Lucy, even when you're sleeping_.' She _refused_ to let fear get the best of her.

"Yeah," Loke brought her back to the present. "Alright. Where to?"

"The old age home," Lucy decided. _Where my earring was found_. Her blood went cold. She did her best to disregard that.

* * *

Lucy did three rounds of the old age home and found not much of anything. The grass in one patch was dead, the building scorched on one side, but that was all. Frustrated, she made to leave, Loke at her side, but froze when her name was called. Turning, she faced Riley Ackles. He was in his guard's uniform, shoulders and arms filling out the material nicely, his hat pulled low on his head. He did look handsome, she had to admit. She gave him a fleeting appreciative once-over, then banished the thoughts to a dusty corner of her mind.

He approached on long legs, shoulders swinging with every step. When he was close enough that Lucy could see the minute tick of annoyance in his jaw, he said, "Can we talk?"

Her heart immediately sank. "…Sure."

"Alone?" He looked to Loke.

"Um..."

The spirit sighed. "I'll just do another once-around."

The expression on Riley's face made Lucy wish Loke would refuse. He was already on his way, though. Seeing no other option that wasn't incredibly rude, Lucy smiled and, as bubbly as she could manage, said, "What's up?"

Riley stood stoically until Loke disappeared behind the building, out of earshot. His hands went into his pockets in a tensed stance. "Guess I'm glad to see that at least your name is the same."

"My name?" Lucy repeated.

"Everything else has been a lie."

"What do you mean?" Her voice squeaked out on her.

He frowned. "You told me you were traveling through Magnolia by yourself. You also said you weren't part of a guild, but if I'm not mistaken, those were some rag-tag members of Fairy Tail you were sitting with yesterday, and you seemed to know each other pretty well. I did a little digging around. My buddy Serg said Fairy Tail had a celestial mage before it broke up."

Lucy fidgeted. "Riley..."

"Why did you lie to me, Lucy?"

The gig was up. She blew a sigh. "Because I was traveling with Natsu Dragneel. I was trying to protect him."

His expression only got darker. "When we met each other on the train, all that bullshit was just so you could hide him?"

"…I guess."

He was even more outraged. "And afterwards, going out on a date with me?"

Guilt bloomed in Lucy's chest. Her cheeks felt hot. She didn't think that telling him that it was more about getting a job than anything would do her any favours. "Sort of, but I did have fun."

He shook his head, looking hurt. "You're with him? Romantically, I mean?"

"Natsu?"

He only stared, unwilling to clarify when they both knew she knew perfectly well who he was talking about.

"I don't know how to answer that."

"How could you not know?"

Lucy shrugged. "Because it's more than not really but less then yes."

He took off his hat and ran his hand through his hair, then over his perpetual five o'clock shadow.

"I'm sorry," Lucy said.

"I feel like an idiot."

 _And just imagine how I feel_ , Lucy thought. She was really racking them up.

Riley tried to shake it off and managed with some grace. "What are you doing out here?"

"Investigating those murders with Natsu," she explained. "I thought maybe there'd be something here that was overlooked…"

Riley's sharp blue eyes looked her over skeptically. "Natsu isn't here, though."

"No," Lucy agreed.

"Well..." He filled his lungs to the max. "Make sure you're cautious, Lucy. You should be traveling with several people, not just one."

With every warning that came her way, Lucy got more and more uneasy. "Can you tell me about the murders?"

He pressed his lips together. "I'm not really suppose to release any details."

"I'm helping with the investigation, though."

"You shouldn't be," he said. "The King only okayed Natsu's involvement. And then there's the bit about the killer going after girls that meet your description. What if he hangs around the crime scenes, Lucy, and sees you? You'll become a target, too."

Chills raced over her skin. Lucy waited for him to tell her to drop it. She wondered if she'd take his warning to heart, or if she was tough enough to stick it out. _There are worse things then men with knifes._ Demons and spells that could leave life-long scars on the land.

Riley didn't try to scare her off. "The only thing we know for sure is that we know nothing."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, only that earring was left behind the other day. And a key from the pier last night, I suppose... It doesn't belong to any lock in the town, though. It might be from an apartment in Clover—that's where she was from. Visiting her friend here in town. She just got in yesterday—hadn't even had a chance to meet up with her buddy yet."

"That's terrible," Lucy said.

Riley nodded. "Yeah. So, like I said, be careful, Lucy."

"Do you still have that guy in custody?" Lucy wondered, hit with a sudden spur of inspiration. "The one you arrested the other day? I'd like to speak with him."

Riley looked hesitant. "I _definitely_ shouldn't be letting you do that."

Maybe it was unethical, but Lucy gave him her best sulky, flirtatious smile. "Please? I really want to catch this guy, and he might know something."

"He's already been interrogated," Riley said.

"Yeah, but not by me. He might be more willing to talk to someone that isn't part of the guard." What she meant was, a girl with a smile. Riley read her clearly.

"Lucy, you know he definitely killed one of those girls the other night. One of the guards saw him."

"I'm not scared," Lucy said. "He's behind bars, right?"

"Yeah," Riley agreed.

"And you'll be with me?" She touched his arm, not quite shameless, but willing to do what it took to get her way.

"Yeah," he said gruffly, looking at her from beneath his dark lashes. He liked his ego stroked. Lucy told herself to stop using it to her advantage, but it was hard.

"Then I'll be safe." She made her eyes wide.

He caved just like the last time. "Alright. Just for a few minutes, though." Riley had a type, apparently, or he just had a hard time saying no to a pretty face.

"Thank you, Riley." He received the full effect of her hundred-watt smile. His earlier anger faded.

"This way." He touched between her shoulders, guiding her away from the old age home toward the jails. Lucy peered over her shoulder in time to see Loke break into a lope. His long legs carried him to her side quickly.

"What's going on?"

"Riley's taking us to question the guy they took into custody the other night," Lucy said.

Loke tucked his find into his pocket for a later discussion.

* * *

The jails were in a separate building than the guard barracks. Grey. Utterly monochromatic, save for the scorch marks Lucy had to imagine were left behind by Tartarus. Of course the jail survived; it was a fortress in itself, squat, barricading bars and steel doors, which were protected by two burly guards: one woman that was thicker than most, and looked meaner, too, and a man that was wiry and fast-looking. Lucy eyed them both and decided that she didn't want to piss them off.

"Sir," they said when they saw Riley. Their hands rested loosely on the guns at their hips. Their eyes barely left the void space beyond Riley's shoulder.

"At ease," Riley said. Lucy squinted at the badge over his heart. It was emblazoned with a star. She wracked her brain and discovered he was a sergeant. And here she thought he was just a regular guard. She praised herself for her good fortune. He could get her information that others couldn't.

"Forgive me, sir, but who is this?" the woman asked. Her jaw was hard, her hair limp and mouse brown, nearly the same shade as her eyes.

"Fairy Tail mages," Riley said.

Her eyes skated to his briefly. "Fairy Tail has been disbanded."

"The _dregs_ of Fairy Tail," Riley clarified. "They're no longer a proper guild, no, but they're conducting an investigation."

She looked like she wanted to say something else but held back. She and her partner grabbed the metal doors and pulled them wide. Lucy peered in. Though the sky was overcast, it was significantly brighter on the streets. Peering into the darkened building was like looking straight into the maw of a beast. It wasn't silent in that pit, either, there was laughing. So much laughing.

"That's him," Riley said. "Lance Henbridge. He's been laughing like a loon since we brought him in. He had a girlfriend. She said he was usually quiet."

He didn't sound so quiet now. At her side, Loke's fingers brushed hers in silent encouragement. Lucy realized that she was lagging behind, waffling on the cusp of entering the jail. _I can do this_. He was just a man behind bars. A mad man, but a man.

She stepped into the jail and the doors swung closed. They locked from the inside, a complex lock system that clicked together. When everything was sitting where it was supposed to be, it resembled the belly of a spider long since dead, its legs curled in tight bows.

"Keep up, Lucy," Loke told her from steps ahead. The blonde turned away from the door and lengthened her steps. As she walked she surveyed the jail. It was as dank inside as she imagined, the walls holding small torches every few steps. There was a _drip, drip, dripping_ that drifted through the concrete halls, echoing off the concrete flooring, the concrete ceiling, and the concrete walls. _Dingy_ was a good adjective. And _clammy._ It smelled like body odour and piss. There was no hallway where a person could walk and imagine that they weren't in a jail. It was just immediately into cells. They lined each wall, more than half of them filled.

"Don't step too close to the cells, Lucy," Riley called over his shoulder. His palm was on his night stick. His shoulders were tense.

"Okay."

Lucy peered into the first cell. There was a cot, a copper waste pan and a sink that was encrusted with yellow grime. A man sat in the corner picking at his nails. "He won't stop laughing, Riley. He won't stop."

"It's alright, Ian. Just relax," Riley said smoothly. "He'll get tired soon."

"That's what you said last time." For his complaint, Ian still sank back into his dank corner and went right back to picking his nails. The next three cells were empty, but in the fourth was an older woman with long scraggly hair. She saw Lucy and immediately rushed to throw herself against the bars.

"Help me!" she screeched. "Help me! They starve me in here! They beat me—and _touch_ me—"

Riley addressed Lucy directly. "Rona here likes to get the girls to give her pity. When they go up to the bars she gropes them."

Lucy chewed her tongue.

"You are a mean, mean man, Mr. Riley," Rona said.

Riley dug through his pocket and handed her a hand-rolled cigarette. "Am I, Rona?"

She took it and dropped herself onto her cot. "I wish you'd be when I asked."

"Not only is that against protocol, you're twice my age," he said.

"Then throw the girly in here." Rona smiled with crooked moss-green teeth.

Riley didn't bother responding to her. After that, Loke dropped back to Lucy's side. The laughing abruptly died.

"Maybe the fucker finally ran out of air," Riley swore. Lucy thought it was eerie with the constant sound-track, but without, it was even worse.

Riley led them all the way to the end of the dimly lit hall and stopped in front of a jail cell that looked no different than any of the others. At first, Lucy thought there was no one inside, but then he shifted, drawing her attention. He was a man of bones and bruises, thin skin stretched over an angular skeleton. He stepped into the light, affording everyone a clear look at his pit-like cheekbones and dead-eyed stare. His hair had been dark brown at some point in his life; now it was bleached white in most areas, affording him a patchy and sickly look. He wore a white T-shirt that was stained yellow with sweat around the armpits and the collar.

"Hullo, Lance," Riley said.

Lance only stood there.

"There's someone here that wants to ask you some questions," Riley continued. "Her name is Lucy. She's investigating those murders we talked about, remember?"

"No. No, no." Lance shook his head vigorously. "I didn't kill that girl. I didn't do it." For a moment he sounded completely rational, not a laughing man, or a man that had spent so much time sunken to his knees that his legs would barely support him. "Please, Sergeant Ackles. I told you—I—I didn't kill that girl."

"Hey," Riley said. "Calm down, Lance. She just wants to talk." He looked over his shoulder to make sure Lucy was still on board. Her chest felt like a fluttering thing, her lungs insufficient breathing in this ammonia-tainted air. She squeezed her keys—it was the closest she'd give in to the urge she had to grab Loke's hand—and nodded.

"Lucy here's a mage. She's—"

"From Fairy Tail," Lance whispered quietly enough that Lucy barely heard it.

"…Yeah," Riley said. "Though you know Fairy Tail isn't a thing anymore, right? It left Magnolia a year ago, remember?"

Lance started mumbling then, low, fast. Lucy strained to hear what he said. _""ill. Kill the girl with. Kill her and—"_ he hiccoughed. " _Kill. Kill and."_

"What are you saying, Lance?" Riley asked. "Speak up."

Lance took his first step forward. " _Blonde like wheat. Brown like sugar."_

" _What_?" Riley prodded.

It was Loke that grabbed Lucy's hand, squeezing her wrist until it hurt.

 _"Mistress_ insists. _Akio_ insists." Lance lunged then, faster than Lucy thought possible. He was so thin that the majority of his body fit through the bars, only his head getting stuck, and that wasn't even too much of an issue. He pushed and pushed his temples against the bars until his very skull squeezed. He grabbed the only thing he could reach: the swell of Lucy's whip. His fingers were like a vice closing on it and yanking her in. He was stronger than he looked, and fast, too, the laughing man totally dissipated, the remorseful and innocent man gone up in smoke. Suddenly he was vicious, spitting mad and rough. He abandoned Lucy's whip and grabbed at her throat, fingers biting into her skin faster than she could blink.

And then chaos descended.

Riley started screaming. His gun came out and laid against Lance's forehead, Loke grabbed the man's wrist. Lucy was paralyzed for yet another breath, still shocked, trying to decide what to do, what coarse of action was best. Then she realized that doing _anything_ was better than this immobility.

Though her throat felt like it was collapsing, she forced her mind to quiet enough that she could don Cancer's Stardress. Swords sharp enough to split hair came into both of her hands. In a short and practiced move—it was amazing what mindless adrenaline and hours of training could do for auto-reflexes—Lucy turned her hand so the meaty part of her palm faced the sky, and brought her sword up in a low, controlled arc. The blade bit into the man's armpit, severing his tendon. His fingers went limp and dropped away, allowing the celestial mage to draw a haggard breath. Blood spurted over the floor, followed closely by Lance's howling. He screamed. And screamed and screamed. Lucy thought it was in pain, but when she met his eye for the brief second she had opportunity to, all she saw there was blind outrage.

"You'll die! You'll all die for Master END!" Lance screamed so violently, spittle flew from his mouth and hit Lucy's cheek. A blood vessel popped in his eye, staining it bright red. He frothed and writhed, adjusting so he could thrust his other arm through the bars. He swiped at her, fingers catching in her necklace and breaking it. Lucy cried out, she couldn't help it. He was violent and unpredictable like no one she'd ever met before.

"You'll die! You'll die! You'll—"

His face blanked. Not just blanked, but went absolutely slack. Not the kind of slack that said he'd fainted, but the kind that came with death. Red leached from his nose, staining his off-white shirt, and then he collapsed, head whinging badly off the bars. He was dead before he hit the ground.

Instead of sobbing, Lucy crouched and picked up her necklace, saving it from the growing pile of blood.

"Lucy—"

She couldn't hear what it was Loke said. She turned from him and made for the exit. The doors were already open, letting in the light.

* * *

Natsu left the crate-littered cargo area for the walkway by the docks. There was nothing there, anyway. The guards had done a very thorough job of cleaning up, only a very faint smear of blood remained where that girl lay. The air still felt heavy, though. Thick with some aura he couldn't quite place. It wasn't exactly Zeref's, or any of his Tartarus demons, but it was... Similar to, yes.

He was going to head back to the motel and pathetically plead with Lucy for her forgiveness, but he paused coming out of the sea of crates, eyes snagging on a blonde figure. She sat on the cement port wall, back to Natsu so all he could see was the shape of her body. It was achingly familiar, that hourglass.

It took courage to take the first step toward her, but once that was done it was like he was on a come-along, tugged forward without much choice.

The wind grabbed her hair and sent it twisting. It was so long now. He liked it, the way it hung off her shoulders and shone like the brightest liquid gold.

"Hey, Lucy," he said when he was within hearing distance. She stiffened but didn't turn, not yet. "You got Happy out here with you?" Hoping so, he searched the slate-grey sky.

Other than over-stuffed clouds, it was empty.

She still didn't reply.

Natsu wanted to fidget but refrained. "Listen, I wanted to say sorry for taking off on you earlier. I know it was a shitty thing to do, but who knows who our killer is, what his motives are, or where he's going to strike again?" _Where_ was Happy?

Lucy still hadn't moved. Natsu reached for her shoulder. Her skin was cold. "You're freezing."

"Would you do anything for me, Natsu?" Lucy interrupted her silence finally.

Natsu barely had to hesitate. "Yes."

"You say yes, but… What if I needed you to do something awful?"

 _Awful_? "What?" Natsu's arm began to ache, his palm colder than it'd ever been before.

Lucy's fingers clenched against the concrete, skin biting into the porous surface. "What if the only way to wake up was to cut the thread of dreaming?"

She was mumbling nonsense. Natsu played along. "Then I'd cut it."

"And if I am that thread?"

His brow furrowed. "You're a girl, not a piece of yarn."

She laughed, a low, depreciative thing, and stood. She wore the red dress he'd bought for her; against the grey of the angry ocean she was a gold-capped rose, plucked.

Natsu expected her to turn, yet her feet took her closer to the ledge. Below that was only ocean. Natsu's heart went into his throat. "Be careful. There are rocks underwater."

"I don't think this will be enough," Lucy said. Her voice had changed, become rough, like silk dotted with sand grit. "I don't think Master's way will be enough, either, though."

"Enough? What's enough?" Natsu started to close the rest of the distance between them, suddenly scared. "Lucy?"

The wind grabbed her hair and lifted it high, the ends swirled together, knotting.

"Come here, Lucy." Natsu held out his hand, still confident that she'd turn.

"He's coming for you, Natsu, and when he arrives, he wants to see his most precious creation, not the man it pretends to be."

She was really starting to scare him now. "What the fuck are you talking about?" That wasn't important, though. Lucy's toes curled around the very ledge of the pier. "Lucy—" Natsu reached for her. Reached and reached. And only grabbed air. Her hands didn't go out to catch the air as she fell, she just _did_ , sliding forward so that the ocean could cradle her.

"Lucy!" Natsu scrambled for the ledge without concern for his own well-being and peered over. There was no exploding splash as she hit the water twenty feet below, but there was the scrap of red that was her dress. His blood roared in his ears. "Lucy!"

"Natsu," came Happy's familiar voice. "What—"

Natsu searched the sky and found Happy flying lowly, wings flapping as he tried to out-compete the wind. "Take me down there."

Happy startled at the rough tone in his voice. "What?"

There was no _time_ to explain. Natsu started searching for the quickest route. Of course it was the one Lucy had taken. There was barely any hesitation. Except, when his feet were on the verge of meeting the open air, her voice cut through him, clear and ringing.

"Natsu?" The world seemed to snap into focus. Like waking from a dream.

When he turned Lucy was there. Not wearing red, but black. A black skirt split high around her hips, a tight top that exposed much of her middle. Loke was at her side, looking disturbed.

She reached for him and took his icy hand in hers without hesitation. She was so, so warm. And real.

"Come away from there."

Numbly, he let her pull him away from the ledge _That wasn't Lucy._ It couldn't have been, right? The wind grabbed his clothes and tugged them viciously. He needed someone else to confirm. "Did you see her?"

Lucy glanced at Loke.

"I only saw you, Lucy and Loke when they came into the pier." Happy looked concerned. "Was there someone else?"

 _Lucy_ was on his tongue. He held it back, knowing how insane that would sound when he was looking at what was obviously the real deal. Her smell was in his nose, that strawberry shampoo, vanilla. _You were wrong_. "I thought... I thought there was a girl." _Thought_ , because he had no idea now. He'd never not trusted his eyes. He tried to remember if he sensed her smell. He couldn't say. He looked over his shoulder to the ocean down below. There was no blotch of red to mark where the girl had entered the water.

"There was someone with you?" Loke asked.

"I think someone jumped into the ocean," Natsu said finally.

"From here?" Lucy wondered. Her scared expression shuffled over for concern. "There are rocks down there. The current is really strong, too."

"Maybe… I don't know if I saw what I thought I did," Natsu said after a second. He looked out into the ocean again. _Was she a dream?_ He hadn't been sleeping well, so anything was possible.

"I'll get the guards to look," Loke offered. He shared a look with Lucy. "Why don't you guys head back to the motel? Happy and I will take care of it."

Happy nearly protested, but he was so thoroughly skewered by a look from Loke, he shushed.

Lucy's hand tucked into Natsu's, her skin's warmth biting into his frigid palm. Natsu focused on that warmness and ignored the voice in his head that said, _'Would you do something awful_?'


	15. Chapter 15

They were inside the motel's walls before Lucy could draw herself out of her own mental turmoil to realize that Natsu had been not only abnormally quiet, but also especially attentive. Not of the world around them, but of her. When was the last time he hadn't been looking at her covertly from beneath his lashes? Probably before they left the pier. He was dying to say something, that look said.

She left it for now and got their room key out.

When the door popped open, Natsu came into the room and asked, "Where is that red dress?"

Lucy wasn't sure what she expected his first words to be, but it wasn't that. "...The one I got the other day?"

He turned to glance at her, as if he couldn't not be looking at her for long. "Yeah."

Seeing the troubled expression on his face, Lucy's stomach plunged. "Why?"

Natsu was suddenly impatient. "Because, I want to know, Lucy. Do you know where it is? Yes, or no?"

She was hit with another wave of nervousness. He looked almost manic. She walked with unsure steps to her pile of clothes and started shuffling through them. A light green halter dress, a blue skirt, chain and chiffon shirt with a keyhole neckline.

She grabbed the red fabric finally and yanked it out.

Tension abandoned Natsu's body. He dropped to the bed's sagging mattress and scrubbed his hands over his face. It didn't last long. He hissed and glowered at his aching palm. It looked even redder than before, swollen and sore.

Lucy followed his line of sight and swore. "I'm sorry, Natsu. I was supposed to clean that for you." And then Gray and Juvia had arrived and thoroughly sidetracked her for days.

He didn't say much of anything, allowing her to dig through his pack like she used to. It felt strange letting her do it now after so long of her not, though he told himself that it shouldn't. It had only been a year, after all. There was a small voice in his head that said a lot could change in a year. People could become wary and guarded, secretive, insecure. He shuddered to think of all that was unsaid between them.

Lucy found the kit and came to the bed, kneeling between his knees. Taking his hand felt intimate, though they'd walked all the way to the motel intertwined like that. With doors closed, it felt somehow different. Given that, she was happy for something to do, something to focus on.

"What happened today?" Natsu asked.

In between getting an alcohol pad open, Lucy's toffee coloured eyes flicked up to meet his. "Riley took me to question the man that committed the first murder. Lance Henbridge."

Natsu's jaw felt like it was wired closed. "And?"

She pushed aside her hair and revealed the thick bruise that spanned her neck. Natsu was on his feet, his hands clenched; she didn't even think he was aware of the movement.

"Where is he?"

"Riley, or the murderer?"

" _Both_."

Lucy shook her head and tugged him back down. The bed squealed. "Lance is dead; he collapsed shortly after attacking me." She pushed out the image of the blood and his moonstone eyes. "And Riley… I left him at the jail."

"Why did he let this—"

"There wasn't anything he could do," Lucy interrupted. "It happened so fast; no one saw it coming."

"I would have." He was so fierce.

Lucy pressed the alcohol swab into his hand to silence him. His face went several sheets whiter. Though she knew it hurt, she really worked the alcohol into the pin-sized hole in his palm, worried about the infection. "Maybe we should go see Porlyusica and get some medicine for this or something?"

Natsu thought of the old lady's intense glower and unforgiving hands. "It feels better already."

"You're a liar, Natsu," Lucy returned.

"Let's just give it a day or two," Natsu said. "I'll keep it cleaner." Not that he'd been doing much for it—it was just a stupid thorn, after all. He'd been stabbed by unhappy plants plenty of times in the past. Granted, they never hurt like this before, but he'd be damned if he went to Porlyusica because he'd been poked.

Lucy sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine, but really, if it's not getting better by then, we're doing something about it. You could get blood poisoning, or—"

She went on, rhyming off a list of ailments while he studied her, monitoring the movement of her lips, the minute way her brows twitched when she talked, her oil black lashes fanning her cheeks. Using his good hand, he cupped her cheek, thoroughly silencing her.

He didn't _care_ about himself. "Are you alright after he attacked you?"

She searched his eyes. "I'm okay, Natsu." His skin was so warm. He smelled like soap. "And you? What was that on the pier?"

He slid his hand down her cheek and her throat, gently brushing over the bruise. He only stayed there for a beat, not quite able to bring himself to linger. "I don't know what I saw."

Lucy's heart flopped. "What do you mean?"

"I haven't been sleeping good. What if I imagined the whole thing?" He looked discontented and disquieted.

She squeezed his hand, not really knowing how to respond. "Loke and Happy will figure it out."

Natsu didn't know which outcome he hoped for more. _But Lucy's dress is still here_. That was sort of telling in itself, wasn't it? "She just walked off."

Lucy brushed his hair back from his forehead. "Hey." He met her eyes. "It's alright, Natsu. If there really was a girl there, there wasn't anything you could do."

She knew him too well. Natsu told her, "I'm glad you're okay."

She smiled. It wasn't at its usual brightness, but he appreciated it anyway. "I'm glad you're okay, too. I was worried for a second there, I thought you were going to jump off the edge."

 _Would you do something awful?_ Natsu didn't respond, unwilling to admit how close he came.

Lucy dropped the used alcohol pad to the ground and wrapped his hand with gauze, making sure it wasn't too tight. She was done in seconds. She made to rise but was stopped, Natsu grabbing her hand and holding her steady. She dropped back to her knees and looked up at him. He wore an expression of stubborn intent. Sensing what was coming, she wondered if she should avoid it to save herself—and Natsu—some heartache. Things were already so complicated. He started to lean in. Instead of turning away like she told herself to, she wetted her lips with a quick flick of her tongue. So faintly she recalled kissing him last night, too drunk for her own good. What would it be like sober?

His lips were warm and dry. He needed to shave, his skin prickling hers. She liked it. Far too much. Enough that it frightened her. Yet, even off balance and uncertain, she didn't want to let him go. He started to lean away so she came up on her knees so their bodies were pressed together. Then she opened her mouth and rubbed his lips with her tongue, deepening the kiss. His breath broke across her cheek in a short burst; he cupped her face between his palms. A thrill travelled from her chest all the way low into her belly. She only stopped kissing him when he got brave and started touching her ribs, then lower, seeking a way to feel her bare skin.

Stilling his hands, Natsu opened his eyes and tried to get a handle on himself. It was embarrassing how short his breaths were. Glancing at Lucy, he saw he wasn't alone, her cheeks were stained red.

"Natsu?" Her voice was both rough and breathy. Like the girl's on the pier.

' _What if the only way to wake was to cut the thread of dreaming_?' He was afraid to answer her. "Yeah?"

"You said you wanted to be a team again?"

' _What if I was that thread_?' _It wasn't real. It wasn't her._ It was easy to imagine her mouth moving around those exact words, though. Natsu blinked, thrown off. "I—yeah, Lucy."

She brushed back his hair again so he could easily see that beneath the dreamy want, she was annoyed. "Leaving me behind isn't what team members do."

He opened his mouth to defend himself. Her finger lay against his lips, thoroughly silencing him. "We either do stuff together, or we go our separate ways." She'd discovered a rod of iron somewhere in her spine. It was as surprising as it was relieving.

Looking at her, Natsu knew there would be no quarter. _Besides_ , a voice in his head said, _if you were with her, you could have prevented her getting hurt_. "Okay." He brought her in closer again, not wanting any space between them. When he was touching her, she wasn't leaping from the side of the pier into the stormy ocean below.

Lucy allowed herself to be kissed again, only feeling a little guilty for the secret she still kept.

* * *

Jellal's feet moved with surety, taking him over craggy rocks and deep gouges in the earth. Every movement was calculated. At his side, Sorano kept up, as did Richard, the earth cradling him like they were one.

Macbeth and Erik were way ahead while Merdy and Sawyer were flanking behind, monitoring their backs to ensure they weren't followed. They were making good time. Another hour and they'd be out of the valleys, two more after that and they would be in a position to commandeer a carriage to take them the rest of the way to Lamia Scale. Closer to Cheria, which meant closer to saving Wendy. He couldn't shake the way Erza looked, scared and on edge. He would do anything to wipe that look from her face.

A shadow emerged from a rock crease, moving quicker than Jellal could follow. Richard's scream filled the air, then the sharp smell of blood. Jellal pulled up short and reeled around at the ready, but it was already too late, Richard was on the ground, a wide pool of blood expanding from his body at a rapid pace.

Too fast to be anything but fatal.

He didn't have to look for their aggressor, they came back again, as vicious as before when they slammed into him in an attempt to drag him to the ground. His side went numb. Though he could feel nothing, he made his fingers clench around their clothing so they could fall together. Magic came to his hand when he asked. The night got blacker, the air suffocating. He didn't pretend to try to keep them alive. Hot blood washed over his body, stinking and sticky. Sorano yelled. Her words were lost. The thing—person?—Jellal gripped so tightly fought for another breath, then got entirely still; dead. He stayed motionless for another moment after that, afraid to move. He was hurt, though he didn't yet know how badly. Likely he wouldn't, not until the adrenaline faded.

"Jellal," Sorano's voice was high in a rare show of unease. "Jellal, are you alright?" Without fear, she took their attacker by the shoulders and pulled them off Jellal's body. They fell, lifeless and near shapeless, contorted by his spell. The only thing Jellal was sure of was its coral coloured hair and wet skin.

"...I'm alright. Richard?"

"You're hurt," she said, ignoring his question.

"Check on him," Jellal ordered with as much conviction as he could muster. His voice didn't falter. _Bully for me._

Sorano hesitated, then turned and went to the man's prone figure. It only took a look to know the truth, but she wasted the time turning him over and checking his pulse, though he no longer bled. Wordlessly, she shook her head.

"Hey," came Merdy's clear, high voice.

Jellal pushed himself up as best he could. His one arm wouldn't work, and the other felt raw where his magic had torn through his body.

"Where's Sawyer?" Sorano asked.

Merdy paused mid-step as she took in the scene. "He circled back just to double check we weren't followed... What happened?"

"We were attacked," Sorano said in that matter-of-fact way she had. "Richard..."

Jellal's adrenaline was starting to disappear and the pain was taking root, so much so that he felt nauseous. Daringly, he lifted the lapel of his cloak and glanced at the damage. His arm hung limply, torn nearly from its socket. The skin was split and bleeding. And hurting. Working one handed, he wrenched his cloak's clasp open and struggled to get it free from his body. Sorano took pity on him and came to help. She worked quickly and quietly, getting it from his shoulders, then taking her knife out and slicing a sling from its inky folds. In seconds she had his arm up, bandaged, and the sling tied around his neck. Jellal sweated through the pain, wondering if he was going to throw up at her feet.

Sawyer crested the same valley Merdy had moments ago. He took in their situation quickly. Jellal suppressed the nausea and stood with Sorano's help.

"Sawyer, tell Erik and Macbeth we've been attacked—"

"No need," Erik's familiar voice came over a ridge to the north. "I heard it all."

Jellal turned and saw the rest of his company approach. Putting on the best face he could, he said, "We need to bury these two and keep moving."

"We can't leave Richard here," Merdy protested.

"We have to," Jellal replied.

"He deserves better than to be left to rot in some valley no one knows!"

"We don't have the time or the luxury for civility," Jellal said shortly, voice like a whip. "A girl's life depends on us getting to Lamia Scale."

"We don't owe anything to Wendy Marvel," Sawyer said. "Richard was our comrade."

Jellal felt his face twist and knew the expression he wore was one of ugly rage. There was nothing he could do for it, though. In fact, he wasn't even sure he cared. It helped get his point across, that face that had made countless men and women sweat and fear. "You know that's a lie after all the trouble you lot caused her in your search for Nirvana." Sawyer flinched. Jellal continued. "Richard is dead; Wendy is not, not yet, unless we waste time lugging a dead man back through here. We're the only one's that are going to mourn him, and I think this place is as good as any."

"He's right." Macbeth's support was rare. Jellal shot him a furtive glance. He looked just as bored as ever. Seemingly unaffected.

"You know I want to help Wendy," Merdy said. "But… Richard—"

"Enough."

Merdy pinched her lips together. There was a long, drawn out moment of silence, then the girl asked, "What is that thing?" She pointed to the mess Jellal made of Richard's murderer. "And are there more of them?"

Though it was misshapen now, and mostly red, it was vaguely humanoid in structure. The aura it carried, even in death, was—however unique—also unmistakable. "It was a demon. As for its numbers… I'm not sure." Best be truthful; they were a group of renegade criminals trying to redeem themselves, but they were _his_ group of renegade criminals; their sins were his, and so were their lives. The burden had never felt heavier, what with Richard lying at his feet. "We won't dig through the rocks, but we can make a pile over his body." That way, though they were leaving him behind, nothing could disturb his rest.

Surprisingly, it was Sorano that laid the first stone.

* * *

Lucy swiped the steam away from the mirror so she could see the bruise deepening on her throat. It wasn't as bad as it could have been, but it was bad enough. And ugly. She dug out some concealer from the bag she'd brought into the washroom and did her best to mask the purpling mark. It was still visible, only slightly duller now with a layer of makeup. She adjusted her damp hair so it covered much of the wide handprint and told herself that there wasn't much sense obsessing over something that only time could change.

On the counter was a light green sundress stenciled with small twigs carrying bunches of plump red berries. She shrugged into it and tied the halter around her neck. She wore it even though the sky outside looked threatening. She didn't imagine she'd be going out much anyway, not for the rest of the day. It was starting to get late, and Natsu was as twitchy as he'd ever been. He'd been clear enough, wanting her to be with someone all the time, he didn't even want her to go into the bathroom by herself. Thankfully, that was an argument she'd won, giving her some much needed time to think about what it meant when he kissed her—and what she _wanted_ it to mean.

There were no easy answers. _Maybe close your eyes and just let things happen_. She wasn't sure if she liked the idea of that, though. It felt like inviting disaster.

Lucy took special care folding and hanging her towel, delaying the moment she had to go back into the main room—back to the decision panel, really. Tell him they should stop to protect her still-bruised heart, ask him to keep going; it could make the pain go away.

It didn't take long to discover that she didn't like being alone with her own thoughts. When they weren't filled with Natsu, they drifted toward Lance Henbridge. _'You'll die. You'll die_.' _That_ was going to haunt her dreams, she was sure. And his fingers closing around her neck. Her necklace breaking. She glanced at the delicate gold laced over the counter. She'd washed it three times, though no blood had actually touched it. It still felt filthy. _Guess I'll add that to the list of jewelry I can't wear anymore_. Her heart hurt just thinking about it. It was the only thing she really had left of her dad. And now that was ruined.

Sadness tried to grab her. She slipped from its greasy grasp and braved her motel room.

Natsu was _almost_ where she left him, sitting on the bed. The only difference now was that he'd gotten significantly more naked, shucked off his scarf and his shirt. He gripped his belt like he meant to get rid of his pants, too, but halted when he saw her. His eyes drifted over her body, letting no space go unexamined. She flushed and fidgeted when he looked for longer than strictly necessary.

"I'm done now. You can shower, if you want." Talking helped her focus some.

Natsu stood and crossed the room, stopping in front of her. Lucy's heart pattered—even harder as he cupped her face between his warm palms and kissed her thoroughly, as if that were something they just did now. She didn't know how she felt about that, either. Weak kneed. Giddy. Excited and scared.

She did so little to prevent it from happening, she had to assume this was what she wanted. His arms wrapped around her ribs, his fingers reaching high beneath the curtain of her hair to toy with the ends of the halter's bow. Lucy's breath hitched when he grabbed a tag end and tugged it a few inches, bringing her dress to the verge of giving up the ghost. All she had to do was move a millimetre and everything she had would be on display. Her skin beat with apprehension. He let go of the fabric and ran his palm over her bare back instead. The relief she felt was knee-quaking.

The door sounded. Natsu kissed her for a prolonged moment, then released her. She licked the dampness from her lips, an excited thrill moving through her. The knock came again.

Lucy tugged her bow back into place. "I'll get it."

Some clarity came to Natsu's eyes. "I got it, don't worry."

She had no problem seeing through his offer. It was going to get old awfully quick if he mother-henned her all the bloody time. "It's just Loke." She could feel the spirit through the door. He was with Happy, and agitated. She wondered if one was a product of the other. The cat hadn't been glad to leave Natsu's side. She was sure he'd been griping about it the whole time.

Natsu answered the door anyway, hoping for Loke as he yanked it back, but preparing for any number of things. He needn't worry, it was as Lucy said. Loke looked damp and cranky. His suit jacket was off and tucked beneath his arm, his white dress shirt open and absolutely saturated.

"Hey." Natsu stepped back to allow the spirit to enter. Happy scurried in after, looking just as wet.

From the center of the room, Lucy asked, "What happened?"

"Loke went for a swim," Happy said. "And then it started to rain. What's your excuse, Natsu?"

The dragon slayer looked quizzical for an instant, then realized Happy was poking fun at his state of undress. Not in much of a mood to laugh, he ignored the cat in favor of joining Lucy in looking out of the motel's dingy window. It was dark now, the sky impossible to see. In the silence, though, Natsu heard the pitter-patter of frenzied rain drops.

Lucy said, "I'm sick of the rain."

"Tell me about it," Loke muttered.

Natsu gathered courage and asked the question that had been burdening him for hours. "Did you find her?"

Loke shook his head. "If there was a girl there, she got dragged out into the ocean. The guards checked, and when they were done, I looked myself. I couldn't find any evidence."

Lucy felt Aquarius' absence acutely in that moment. Her wrathful mermaid could make the ocean give up all of its secrets. She was out of reach, though. Loke glanced at her, sensing her train of thought. He softened; she hated that look, the sympathetic glean in his eyes. She toughened her skin.

"Maybe… maybe I really didn't see anything," Natsu said. He didn't seem relieved.

Loke said, "It's more likely that we just can't find anything. Did you say anything to her?"

"I… I told her to get away from the ledge." _I touched her, for Gods' sake._ How could she have been in his head?

"Did she say anything back?" Loke asked.

' _He's coming for you, Natsu, and when he arrives, he wants to see his most precious creation, not the man it pretends to be_.' Natsu scrubbed his face, annoyed. His palm twanged. "Nothing really." Just nonsense.

Loke examined the dragon slayer carefully. "You're sure?"

"I don't know. She was talking about threads and dreaming and—"

"Natsu said he hadn't been sleeping very well," Lucy said when he just trailed off. "Maybe he was… I don't know, like, sleepwalking or something? Maybe he dreamed her."

"Freaky," Happy said.

"Maybe." But Loke didn't look completely sold.

"If you guys are here, I'm going to have a shower," Natsu said. And then maybe go to bed and try to sleep away his memory. He found he wasn't so excited for that either, though, remembering his dreams from the last few nights. What would tonight bring? Zeref, or Lucy throwing herself over edges? _Maybe you'll dream nothing if you have Lucy with you_. That alone was enough to tempt him. He was eager to feel her beside him again. And this time, she wouldn't be rushing out of bed in the morning to throw up last night's fun. This time, he wouldn't have her voice kicking around in his head, asking him if he wanted to know what was up with her and Gray.

"Alright," Loke said. Always worrying, he asked, "Did you guys get anything to eat?"

Natsu paused, hand on the bathroom doorframe. "…No." He'd been so distracted, he hadn't had much time to focus on how his stomach was turning itself inside out, starving.

Loke looked to Lucy. The blonde said, "Not since yesterday." Had it really been so long? The look he gave her was positively scathing, as if she'd done it on purpose.

"They serve takeout at the Thorn and Thistle," Loke said. "Come on, Lucy, we'll go get something and bring it back."

Sheepish, Lucy said, "Sure."

Natsu started to protest. Loke cut him off. "I wouldn't ever let anything happen to her, Natsu. She can't stay in here forever. It's literally steps away from the motel—she'll be safe."

He looked as stubborn as a mule, but when he opened his mouth, he only said, "I'll get a Ruben with extra fries. And a salad. And dessert, if they have anything."

"Fish for me," Happy said. "Steamed."

"We'll be back in a few." Loke placed his palm between Lucy's shoulders and guided her out, grabbing the umbrella that leaned against the wall on the way; it was the same one that came from the spirit realm, looking only a little scuffed and dirty after its fall to the ground the other night. As soon as the door was closed, Loke said, "You think we should ask Gray and Juvia if they want anything?"

Lucy wrung her hands together. "I guess."

He turned them in the direction of Gray's room. She didn't ask how he knew where the ice mage was staying. Loke knew too much for his own good lately. "I wanted to talk to you about something I found earlier today."

She looked up at him. "Found? At the pier?"

He nodded. "And at the old age home."

"What is it?"

He waited until they turned a sharp corner before stalling and reaching into his soaking pocket. From the depths he pulled out two ragged looking teeth that were sharper than any Lucy had ever seen before. She couldn't think of an animal it would belong to.

"Teeth?"

"Yeah," Loke agreed. "I found one in that patch of dead grass we saw at the old age home, and the other was wedged in the concrete at the pier."

"Okay… What does it mean?"

"I don't know. When I picked it up, there was residual power coming from it." Lucy looked horrified so he said, "It feels dead now, though." His assurance did little to pacify her.

"What kind of magic uses body parts?" She screwed up her face in detestation.

"Beats me."

"I need to do some research." She sighed. "Which means bringing Natsu with me. He's the _worst_ when I'm trying to focus on something."

Loke smiled faintly, imagining what she meant. Natsu wasn't built for sitting in stuffy rooms that smelled of pulp and ink, reading page after page of magical history. "Magnolia's library was destroyed, so it might not be an issue."

Lucy leaned back against the wall and tipped her head back. "Damn." And then a thought occurred to her. "Crux. Oh… but his specialty is celestial magic…"

"Yeah," Loke said, sounding hopeful, "But he may still know. It's our best shot, unless you want to head back to Crocus."

Well… She'd get away from the dark cloud that was hanging over Magnolia, but it meant the potential of facing Jason again, and her old landlord. Rent wasn't due _yet_ , but it would be soon _._ Not to mention the King, and the shame that came with running off with the man that defaced his castle. Even if he did forgive Natsu, there was bound to be some bad feelings there. "Maybe we'll just try this first." She wasted no time grabbing the silver key from her hip and summoning the southern cross. He looked as dopy eyed as ever, levitating ludicrously in the middle of the motel's hallway.

"Miss Heartfilia. Master Leo." His heavy-lidded eyes drifted to Loke's gruesome prize. "Are those teeth?"

"Yeah," Lucy said. "Can you please do a search and tell me of all the magic that uses them?"

"That's a broad search. There are many kinds. Can you limit it?"

Lucy said, "I want everything you can find. I don't want to miss anything, so no."

"It may take awhile."

Time wasn't a luxury she wanted to offer, but what could she do? "Take as long as you need to be thorough."

The cross nodded. His eyes started to droop closed. "I'll return to the spirit realm and contact you when I have the information you require."

"Thank you!" Lucy told him graciously. He faded without another word.

Loke stuffed the teeth back in his pocket. "Alright." He held out his soggy shirt. "I'm going to get changed, Lucy."

"You're ditching me here?" Lucy protested.

Loke said, "Gray's room is there. Ask them what they want. I'll be right back." He disappeared before Lucy could get a word in edgewise. She glared at where he'd been, more than tired of Loke's disappearing acts. What the hell was he thinking?

She still hadn't made a move when the room the spirit had pointed to came open and Gray stepped out, looking dishevelled.

The ice mage didn't even look her way, just started toward that cursed balcony. His hands were empty tonight; maybe he'd drank more than enough last night. Lucy entertained the idea of standing there silently and letting him slip away, but that wasn't how you treated someone you were friends with. You said hi, asked them how they were, smiled and invited them to the shitty bar that spurned a wealth of bad decisions for many of Magnolia's citizens.

At the end of the hall now, he placed his palm on the balcony's door handle. Lucy rushed to catch up, wanting to get to him before he could go outside and be enveloped by the night. This felt more neutral. "Gray."

His shoulders went stiff. He stayed that way, facing the door without acknowledging her for so long, she thought he just _wouldn't._ Then he turned. He was a mess, dark bags beneath his eyes, hair flat, his mouth straight and hard like it hadn't ever been before.

"Lucy, hey."

Her stomach flopped annoyingly. Was it ever going to be easier? She straightened her shoulders. "How's it going?"

"It's… ah…" Gray's eyes trekked to her throat, thinking it was easier than looking her in the eye. The blue and purple caught his attention. He reached out before he even thought about it and pushed her hair back. His expression slipped towards outrage. "What the fuck happened?"

Lucy drummed up some sense and pulled away. "Riley brought me in to question the guy that murdered one of those girls. I guess… I got kind of close and he freaked out."

Gray squeezed his fingers tight and tucked his hand deep into his pocket. "You alright?" His concern was burdened with depreciation. Lucy could just imagine the stream of curses and cynical self-devaluing comments going through his head after he touched her; they were written all over his face.

"I'm okay. It's just bruised." She didn't want to talk about that anymore. Before they could fall into awkward silence, she asked, "What about you? Are you okay?"

His jaw clenched. "What do you mean?"

She gave a small shrug. "You just look… stressed."

That was one way to put it. He scrubbed his face. "I don't know."

Her awkwardness disappeared, replaced by concern. "What's wrong?"

Gray wasn't going to bother voicing his ails—he was going to tell her to get on her way, and tell her to stay that way, really, but Lucy was the only one that shared the burden with him. He checked down the empty corridor, making sure Juvia wasn't coming yet, then spilled in a low whisper, "I—I think Juvia knows."

Lucy's stomach pitched again, most unpleasantly. "Why would you say that?"

"Because. She cornered me this morning. Asking about you. About us."

 _About us._ It seemed so incriminating. She pushed her hair back impatiently. Movement did little to alleviate her nervous energy. "What did you tell her?"

"What do you think, Lucy? The same thing you're going to tell her if she comes asking." He was suddenly fierce. Frighteningly so. Lucy held her breath, waiting for a threat that remained unuttered. Like he wished he could but didn't quite dare.

Gathering courage, she said, "Loke thinks we should just tell them. He says it's not right, even if it was in the past." And damn Loke; he was the last of her spirits she expected to be her moral compass. But instead of showing up at her house the day after Natsu left with a gifted case of vodka and a pack of condoms, and a list of dives they could hunt through to continue on her losing streak, he'd arrived with a giant bottle of water, the largest container of aspirin you'd ever seen, and a hair tie with a little purple rose stuck to it so she could pin her hair back while she was sick for the rest of the day. He was there nearly every day after, too, crashing on her couch and even making her meals when she was too miserable to do it herself. He was a good spirit and an even better friend.

Gray looked at her sideways, daring her to agree. She didn't, not yet, not when the path of least resistance was still unblocked, but she _thought_ about it.

Gray asked, "You guys are hooking up? You and Natsu, I mean."

Lucy's neck got hot. "I don't know."

He puffed up his cheeks, considering. _That_ was a shitshow he didn't want to be a part of. Dealing with Juvia would be bad enough. "Listen, just tell Loke to mind his own business, okay? I know he thinks it's good to just put this out there, but he didn't see Juvia today. The truth would crush her." He swiped his hand over his face again. In that one movement, Lucy saw how truly exhausted he was. Her heart ached.

"And if things are going for you and Natsu, why mess it up?" Gray looked like he wanted to say something else, but a tiny noise caught his attention. The halls were empty, yet the sinking feeling in his guts said that just because he couldn't see her, didn't mean that she wasn't there.

"What is it?" Lucy asked.

Gray pinched his eyes closed, praying he was wrong. The quiet squeal of a door didn't hammer the nail into the coffin, but it was pretty fucking close. Without another word, he left Lucy there, not wanting to affirm his suspicions, but needing to. She didn't follow him down the hall.

The door to his room was open a crack, the light from inside petering out to make a long rectangle on the floor. Gray felt sick reaching for the handle. But reach he did; no one would ever say he was a coward. Well, maybe they would, his conduct had been less than stellar lately.

As soon as the door slid open on its squealing hinge, he wished he didn't feel like being brave. After all, waiting for her on the balcony for hours and hours and wondering why she didn't show was better than actually knowing. Knowing felt worse than a kick in the balls.

Her suitcase was on the bed, her clothes thrown haphazardly inside. She flitted around the room, some kind of blue-dusted nymph, agitated and hectic. It was several long seconds before she realized that he was there, watching her. Her eyes flicked up to meet his; he saw everything in her gaze that he needed to see. He didn't say a word as she slammed the lid of her suitcase down and zipped it up. The strap of a scarlet coloured bra hung out the edge. She didn't fix it, too eager to get away.

Hurrying, she deked between him and the doorframe. Gray's hand shot out without his permission, grabbing her wrist. He had no idea what he was going to say. _What do you think you know? What did you hear? It doesn't matter what happened in the past. I love you_.

His tongue was a pound of lead as he looked into her accusing and wet eyes. The girl that loved him too much had finally run out of love.

She jerked out of his grasp and continued on her way. He let her go because he couldn't help but focus on what he knew all along, he really didn't deserve Juvia Lockser.


	16. Chapter 16

Rain drilled through Juvia's meager long-sleeved T-shirt and soaked her straight to her skin. The Briar's Lock's door slammed closed behind her and didn't open again. She didn't know why she thought it would—well. No. that was a lie. She knew _exactly_ why she hoped it would, but Gray didn't follow. Not to tell her that it was a lie, though she knew it wasn't, not to tell her that it didn't matter, though how could it not, with the way he was acting, and not to tell her that he was sorry for darting around the truth for so. long.

She dragged her suitcase, not really sure where she was going—no trains were running at this hour—and noticed that her crimson bra was hanging out the side. It was saturated like everydamnthing else. She didn't bother fixing it.

Annoyance pushed out hurt. She wracked her brain for some place to go. The only place in Magnolia even remotely equipped to accept travellers was Briar's Lock, or the Thorn and Thistle. The latter had three rooms above the dingy tavern. They were usually reserved for whores, citizens that were down and out on their luck and could afford nothing more, or people like her. In a pinch with no where else to go.

She cringed at the thought of sleeping in those lice-infested rooms. But what else was there? She couldn't go back to the motel. What if she saw Lucy? Or Gray? Or them together again? ' _She was asking about you. About us.'_

 _About us. About us._ Like it was a _real life thing._

The rain came harder. Juvia tipped her head up and scowled at the ominous clouds. Of course, it didn't _stop_ the rain. It never did. It only made her more frustrated.

Huffing, she did the only thing she could to get away from it: entered the Thorn and Thistle.

It was full tonight, bursting with locals that spent their money trying to eke out a good time. It didn't matter that they had almost none to spend. The floor was wooden, sodden with years and years of spilled beer. The whole place was rank in the way only old bars were, smelling of a thick mixture of human and alcohol. In the corner, a woman wearing a huge cloak fiddled with the juke box while a score of men hung at her elbows. Music started to pour out, some upbeat tune Juvia had no patience for. She approached the man working the bar. He was tall and rake-thin, with a well-groomed blonde head of hair, and an equally well-groomed beard. He meticulously dried a glass.

She stood at the bar for several long seconds, wedged between two burly men who wore equal expressions of disdain, wet where she touched them. She ignored their looks; to not was to be miserable. "Excuse me," she said finally, sick of going unnoticed. She'd spent most of her life that way, just the gloomy girl no one wanted to be around.

The bartender glanced up. He had nice eyes, green, fringed with dark lashes. "Yeah?" If only he wasn't so crass.

Juvia cleared her throat. "I'm looking for a room."

"All full."

Her heart sank. "You have nothing?"

"Nope."

"Are you sure? I'll take anything. It's just for the night; I'm moving on in the morning."

"Briar's right across the road. They got plenty of vacancies. Want me to call over?"

"No," Juvia said sharply. "I—I don't want to stay there. Please."

"Sorry, lady, it just can't be done."

"Kel, are you giving the girl a hard time?" asked a honeyed voice.

Juvia turned and was surprised to see that the men beside her had vanished. Now the woman in the cloak occupied the space at her right elbow. Beneath the fabric's sateen folds, her hair was as red as garnets, her eyes as black as midnight. Around her throat was a macabre necklace of sharp-looking grey teeth.

Kel, the bartender, got a dazed look in his eye. "No, Eileen—"

" _Lady_ Eileen," she corrected, "Remember?"

"Yes, Lady," he said.

"So." Eileen leaned her elbows on the counter. "What seems to be the problem?"

Kel blinked his eyes clear. "She wants a room and we have no openings."

Eileen's smile was beatific. "Is that _all_? I'm actually leaving tonight, Kel, so she can have my room."

"You're leaving?" he repeated.

"Yes, Sir." She tapped the counter where his hand was limply splayed. "Things to do. You understand. There's a man that requires my attention, and he _hates_ to be ignored."

Juvia wished she could tune them out, but the woman was the kind that sucked up all of the attention in the room. She found herself eyeing her even when she made an effort not to. Eileen was beautiful—in a frightening kind of way. Her mouth was more than a little malicious, her eyes brimming with a mean kind of mirth.

"This man… he's your lover?" Kel asked.

Juvia wished Gray would look at her the way Kel was looking at Eileen. Worshipfully. She didn't think anyone had ever looked at her like that before. _Never?_ Unwittingly, she recalled Gray laying in their bed, naked from the waist up, eyes heavy-lidded as she walked from the washroom in his favorite lingerie. In the interest of torturing herself, she wondered if he looked at Lucy in the same way. Lucy, who didn't kill his father. Lucy who always had a smile for everyone.

"Heavens." Eileen's laughed dragged Juvia back to the bar. "If only. A good toss would loosen him up, I think."

Kel looked both relieved and slightly outraged.

"Enough of that. Pour the girl a drink, get her a hot meal, Kel, and I'll take her to the room, alright?" Eileen asked.

"Oh," Juvia finally spoke. "I'm not hungry." She couldn't even imagine eating. Her stomach was churning so much; she'd probably just throw it right back up.

"Don't be silly." She grabbed Juvia's arm and started leading her away. Juvia followed on wooden legs, unsure of _why_ she moved, just knowing that she did.

* * *

When Gray didn't offer explanation or return, Lucy decided that it was something Private. She turned away from the hallway, taking the set of stairs nearest to her. Halfway down, she wondered if Loke was going to ditch her, but as soon as she thought that, the air glimmered at her side. He stepped out and started down the stairs as well, not missing a beat. He'd changed into something more comfortable, a fitted green hoody and a black pair of slim fit cargos. On his feet were a pair of boots that looked as though they would have taken hours to lace. She revaluated her initial assessment. Maybe he was trying to look casual, but he'd put some thought into his wardrobe. Then again, Loke always worried about crap like that.

"Trying to pick up in our favorite dive?" Lucy asked facetiously, trying to dig at him for leaving her alone with Gray.

There was a joke on his tongue. If it was anyone else, at any other time, Loke would have ribbed into her. He refrained, knowing that the wound was rawer than ever. "You never know when romance is going to strike." He grinned savagely.

"If I did things like carry condoms, I'd hand you one and give you a safe sex talk."

"I think that's my shtick." To Lucy's horror, he dug through his pocket and pulled out a square package, tucking it into her hand. "I know it's easy to forget, but don't put it on too tight. If it rips—"

"Loke—"

"Use a new one, that one's useless." He took out another and gave her that one as well. "For backup."

"Seriously? Do you just have a pile of them on you at all times?" Her face was hot.

"Why do you think I wear cargos?" He winked. "Roll it on, from the tip to—"

"Okay!" she said loudly, truly embarrassed now. "Enough."

Loke's grin was a hundred watt. "I don't want you to be unprepared."

Lucy shook her head and walked faster, thankful that Loke didn't tease her when she didn't give them back.

One really did never know.

The rain outside came down harder than ever. Loke popped open the umbrella and held it high. It helped keep Lucy's head dry, but it was pouring so much now that when the raindrops hit the ground, they splashed back up and soaked her shoes. Wardrobe fail. She didn't grumble—aloud at least.

"What did Gray and Juvia want?" Loke asked.

"…I actually didn't get an answer," Lucy admitted. "Gray took off without saying anything, and I didn't even see Juvia."

"Alright… maybe they're doing their own thing."

Under the Thorn and Thistle's awning, the downpour was restricted. Loke closed up the umbrella, then grabbed open the door and ushered Lucy inside. The bar was busier than he remembered it ever being before—though, when the options were so limited, he wasn't sure why he was surprised.

Lucy surveyed the room. "I could totally do without ever coming back here again."

"Come on." Loke took her hand and led her to the bar, fighting for a place at the counter. A woman with long dark hair turned to scowl at him. Her expression turned to a smile when she took him in, though. Lucy rolled her eyes. Nothing ever changed; women loved Loke. Always. She grabbed a menu from a stand and flipped through it while her most flirtatious spirit did himself proud.

Movement at the opposite side of the bar caught her eye. Lifting her gaze, she saw a woman in a midnight black cloak turn away from the countertop. That was fine enough, but what really made her pause was the blue haired woman at her side. Juvia's locks, though wet and matted to her head, were unmistakable. Lucy asked for clarification anyway.

"Is that Juvia, Loke?"

Loke halted his conversation and followed Lucy's line of sight. "…Looks like."

"What's she doing here?" She searched next for Gray, yet she knew full well he wasn't there. "And who is she with?"

"No idea."

Lucy wavered, on the verge of going after Juvia. Loke was more decisive than she was, taking a step in the right direction. "Juvia!" His voice carried over the din. She glanced back over her shoulder, met his eyes, then looked at Lucy by his side. Her expression got dark. She turned away from them and hurried faster than before. Loke started to pursue.

Lucy grabbed his hand, halting him. "It looks like she doesn't want to be bothered." The water mage was walking with great purpose; it felt very much like none of Lucy's business.

Loke lagged. The bartender showed at that moment. "What can I get you?"

The fight went out of the spirit. Lucy loosened her grip on his hand. Together they placed their order. Loke got extra.

"Hungry?" Lucy asked.

"I'm going to Gray's room," Loke explained.

Lucy conveyed the last thing Gray had to say about Loke's meddling.

"And that's why I'm going," Loke clarified. He ordered a beer next, to pass the time while they waited for their food. Lucy withheld, her body still remembering last night's whisky.

* * *

The woman dragged her through the bar, cutting a swath through the gaggles of men and women. Every eye was on them. When she could, Juvia looked away from Eileen's flowing cloak and caught sight of a table filled to the brim with guards. One in particular caught her eye and held it. Riley Ackles.

"Juvia!" Her name came not from the guards' table, but from the bar. Turning, she saw a familiar blonde figure lingering. Immediately her mind put Gray at her side, but it wasn't Gray she was with. Loke. It was he that called her name. With his suspicions confirmed, he instantly tried to approach. Wanting nothing to do with _that,_ Juvia bit her cheek hard and walked fast enough that she was no longer lagging behind Eileen, but keeping pace.

Through a set of double doors at the back was a dingy room (one dust-laden lightbulb illuminated the place rather inadequately) that smelled like onion and cigarette smoke. Eileen made a hard right and started climbing a set of near-invisible stairs. Juvia held her breath until she was halfway up the long flight and couldn't any longer. The smell of onions was gone, but the cigarettes became even more pungent.

"Thank you for giving me your room," Juvia said in an effort to clear Lucy from her mind.

Eileen murmured her agreement.

"How long have you been staying here?"

"Hm…" Eileen mused. "Too long, really. I'm surprised I haven't been called back sooner."

"Back to what?"

"Work," she said evasively.

"What do you do?" She asked to be polite.

"I hunt, Juvia."

Juvia startled. "How do you know me?"

Eileen laughed. "I don't. Sorry. Your name is on your suitcase."

Juvia glanced down in the wan light and saw the golden name plate on top of her bag shining like a weak sun. "Oh," she said, feeling foolish. Recovering, she asked, "What do you hunt?" Maybe she was a _little_ curious.

"My emperor's most precious creation," she replied in a covert whisper. That mean tilt to her mouth was directed at Juvia now. The water mage felt herself wanting to squirm beneath the look. "I've found the man but not the beast. It's maddening."

"What do you mean?"

Eileen met her eyes squarely. "Never mind."

The thought flew from Juvia's head. "The emperor… You're not from Fiore?" Of course not, though, her accent was slightly… off.

The stairs evened out on the second floor. The hallway diverged, though it didn't have very far to go, twenty feet on either side. This part of the bar was better lit. At least, well enough that Juvia could see the clouds of smoke lingering in the air. Not all of it smelled like cigarettes. Something sweeter.

"Enough about me." Eileen stopped at room number three and produced a brass key from her pocket. "Tell me about you."

"About Juvia?" She felt like her head was all full of cotton.

Eileen leaned against the doorframe, pausing before she opened the room completely. "Well… Juvia…" She laid her hand against Juvia's cheek. "Not really you, specifically. Tell me about Gray Fullbuster. Everything you know."

"Gray-sama?" She hated herself for the way his name came out, still so _choked_. She couldn't help it. He was a liar. She was _furious_ with him. But she still wanted to love him.

"You got it."

Eileen threw open the door and revealed the room beyond. It was small. Less than three hundred square feet, all told. There was a single cot, a beat up dresser holding a tall, finger-grease-stained brass lamp heavy with cobwebs, and a shag carpet that looked like it hadn't been swept or washed since it was laid on the ground. Against one wall, beneath a small square window, was a heart shaped loveseat.

"Sit." Eileen pointed to the cushions. Juvia hesitated. Eileen pushed between her shoulder blades and Juvia felt her feet moving. She dropped her suitcase by the bed, then went to the couch, taking up one seat, sitting prim and proper, though she only felt like a mess.

Eileen flopped down next to her and kicked her feet up over top of Juvia, heels resting on the armrest like they were very close friends. Juvia was startled, but she didn't push the woman off.

"So," Eileen started. "Gray Fullbuster. Go."

* * *

Natsu was yanking on a pair of sweat pants when Lucy and Loke finally returned. The look he gave the blonde was full of relief. Lucy's heart flopped annoyingly, but she smiled all the same, pleased that he was pleased to see her.

"Hey," Loke greeted and passed Natsu an overflowing bag of food. The dragon slayer's stomach grumbled audibly.

"Thanks, man."

"And mine?" Happy asked.

Loke doled out a smaller bag. Then he started to turn away.

"Aren't you going to hang out?" Natsu asked. "We didn't get a chance to catch up earlier." Or say anything to each other at all, really.

Loke glanced at Lucy. The blonde was running a torn towel over her wet legs, then searching through her clothes for a pair of tights. "I was going to go say hey to Gray. I haven't seen him at all."

"Well," Natsu said, "Bring him over. We'll hang out." That way he could try to quell the suspicion he felt riding in his chest like an irate passenger.

"Yeah," Loke said absently. "I'll ask." Then he was gone. The door shut quietly in his wake.

Lucy tugged her tights on beneath her dress. She finished quickly, then went to her own bag of food and dug out the three forks she'd stuffed inside. "Here." She should have only bothered with two. Happy was already elbow-deep in his fish. Natsu took his fork, then set his bag on the scuffed up table and involved himself in the extended task of digging out his mountain of food. Lucy settled in one of the rickety chairs, thinking about right and wrong and truths and killing something good before it even had a chance to grow.

* * *

Eileen was like a throneless queen, lounging on that dingy loveseat. She swirled a glass of wine then sipped from it. When she swallowed she said, "Well, Juvia. You've been a wealth of information, but positively _depressing_."

Juvia realized for the first time in what felt like hours that her eyes were wet. She blinked, coming out of a deep stupor. _What…?_ Bits and pieces came back to her slowly. _'About us_.' More tears came. She tried to make a fist but there was also a wine glass in her hand. It was on her tongue. She'd been drinking. She didn't remember _that_ either.

Eileen rolled her eyes and sat up. The warmth her legs left behind on Juvia quickly dissipated. "Yeah. I think that's my cue to leave. Before I go, though, tell me, is it because he slept with busty? Because by the sounds of it, you just weren't a thing when that happened."

Juvia didn't remember giving this woman all of those details. But she must have. She found her voice. It felt like she hadn't spoken for hours. "The lies."

Eileen smiled. "Lies will bury you alive."

Definitely. Gray couldn't dig fast enough, and he was burying her right along with him.

"You should pass along my thanks when you see him next, Juvia. He made my job easier."

"Hunting." She felt so stupid, like her brain was just a touch too slow. _Eileen is a hunter._ Of…? She had no answer.

The door opened and a woman entered. She was all coral hair and ivory skin and onyx eyes. Beautiful.

"What are you doing here, Akio?" Eileen asked without turning to see their visitor.

"Lady Eileen. I need more teeth." When she spoke, Juvia saw her tongue was thin, her teeth finely pointed. _Not_ human, her mind said. Her skin began to crawl.

"You're scaring my guest," Eileen drawled.

Akio closed her eyes; some of the intensity of her visage faded. Now she was simply beautiful, not stunning. She smiled; her teeth were square and white and neat. Eileen nodded her approval.

"That's better. Now. I gave you teeth already."

"I have gone through them, and still he doesn't wake."

"I told you, the real deal will be the only thing that brings him out."

Juvia watched the conversation, an outsider looking in. "Who are you trying to wake?"

"Never mind," Eileen said absently.

"I thought I had her today, but she fought back and the man's body gave out," Akio said. "The doppelgangers are the best I've been able to do so far."

"I don't see what the problem is," Eileen said. "You know where the girl is, just do the deed and be done with it."

"He looks for me already," Akio said. "He'll kill me if he catches me in the act."

"So? Your purpose is to bring an end to our emperors suffering, sometimes sacrifices must be made. Stop being useless." Eileen wore an expression that made Juvia's heart contract. She'd never seen anyone so cold before. She struggled to sit up, her mind coming awake in increments.

"Now look at what you've done," Eileen muttered. "You've scared her again. Leave, Akio, before I tell His Majesty to send someone new. Someone more capable."

Akio deflated.

Juvia tried to get her feet beneath her. Her body was so sluggish. The feeling only increased when Eileen turned her eyes on her.

"Relax, Juvia. I can think of no reason you should be in danger at the moment."

Juvia's muscles turned to butter.

Akio spoke up again. "She's one of them, isn't she? Master said—"

"I'm aware of his orders," Eileen said. "But this poor thing is already having a bad day. How could I bring myself to make it worse?"

Akio stepped closer. "She's Gray Fullbuster's, is she not? May I have her?"

Eileen looked at Juvia for a long, long time, considering. Finally, she said, "Go, Akio. You have things to do, if I'm not mistaken."

It wasn't a yes, but it wasn't a no, either. Akio offered Juvia a grin. "I think we'll have fun together."

Eileen lifted her hand and snapped her fingers. The other woman just… _vanished._ "Parasitic thing. I told His Majesty to just get rid of her, but… He's fond of all of his creations. They have a special place in his heart, I suppose." The woman sat up and patted Juvia's knee companionably. "Don't worry about that, Juvia. She'll leave you be for the night at least. Now, there is a man downstairs that wants to buy a girl drinks."

Juvia blinked slowly. She felt like she was rising from a dream. "Gray-sama?"

Eileen's smile could have cut diamonds. "Of course not. He's off nursing his wounds. But really now, after everything you just told me, you want him to chase after you?"

Juvia bit her lip hard, punishing herself. "Not if he loves someone else." Even if she loved him.

"And rightfully so. Get a backbone, Juvia. Have some fun. Kick the dead weight for the little while that you can; you'll feel better afterwards." She stood, stretching like a languid cat. "Come on. Put a new dress on and get back downstairs."

Juvia stood. She realized that she was still soaked through, and shivering. Eileen shamelessly went through Juvia's suitcase and held out a sky blue dress with a sinking neckline. It was too nice for the Thorn and Thistle.

"I _insist_ ," Eileen said when she saw Juvia hesitate. "Trust me. Not too much now. But enough to know I'll never fool around with this."

Juvia took the dress. Her whole body shook. _Scared,_ she realized, though she couldn't say _why_.

Eileen patted her cheek with warm fingers. "Good girl. Go enjoy yourself while you can. Try to forget about Gray Fullbuster. The only thing at the end of his road is a broken heart."

Didn't she know it? Juvia stripped and donned the dress.

* * *

Loke didn't bother knocking. The door was open, anyway. Inside, Gray's room was a mess of belongings. Socks and pants and sweaters, T-shirts and the occasional beer bottle thrown around like a whirlwind had come through. That whirlwind was an angry Gray Fullbuster. Amongst all the chaos, he found the devil slayer sitting on the bed, his hands laced through his hair.

"Hey."

Gray sucked in a deep breath and lifted his gaze. He didn't look particularly surprised to see Loke. Nor did he look happy. "Hey."

Loke came the rest of the way in, stepping over a bra he was sure didn't belong to Gray. "Juvia know her shit's all over the ground?"

Gray groaned and flopped back on the bed. The mattress's springs squealed. "I'm sure she doesn't really care."

"So I'll take that to mean that you _don't_ know she's at the Thorn and Thistle with some chick?"

Gray was still for a moment, then propped himself up on his elbow. "She is?"

"Yeah."

"Thought she would have left town already."

"On what train, eh?" Loke asked. "None's running this late."

Of course.

"She knows about you and Lucy?"

"Nope. She just packed up her shit and left me here for no reason," Gray snapped.

"You're an idiot," Loke told him. "Get up and go across the road and tell her that."

"She doesn't want to see me."

"Yeah," Loke agreed. "Probably not after all this crap, but I think if you just tell her you're sorry and explain what happened—"

"Lay off." The room got colder, Gray's magic doing what it wanted. Even from where he stood, Loke could see the black mark stretching over the devil slayer's body. He felt a twang of uncertainty, but refused to give that emotion any foothold. It was Gray, after all. He was always in control. Even when shit was going south.

"At least go make sure she's okay. Magnolia's a weird place right now, and I didn't recognize the girl she was with."

"The Thistle's a busy place," Gray said, though he was already sitting up. "Not likely anyone's going to attack her there."

Loke read through his words: he was looking for assurance. "Probably not, but come on. We'll just check on her."

Gray stood and shoved his feet into his boots.

* * *

Every step toward the Thorn and Thistle brought Gray unease. The headache that had been lingering for days returned, stronger than ever. It pulsed behind his eyes, making it difficult to concentrate. The rain hammered into him, slicking his hair to his forehead. It only took seconds to reach the bar, but the storm made quick work of he and Loke. Every scrap of clothing was drenched.

Gray couldn't get inside fast enough, though once he was there, he wished he wasn't. It was too loud. Too crowded. His stomach churned harder than before. He thought at first it was the smell of alcohol, then he decided that it was his migraine having its way with him, making him nauseas. _Then why is your arm burning?_ And it was, his skin was crawling like it had those very first months he'd worn his father's mark. It felt brand-new again, like he had no idea what to do with it or how to control it. _Breathe._ _And look._ Juvia was in here somewhere. _Focus._

He had no trouble picking her out in the crowd, he never did. First he felt relief—she was alright, seemingly—then he felt a weighted ball settle in his stomach. She looked up from the guards' table as if she felt his eyes on her, and met his gaze. A myriad of emotions flitted over her face. Hope, anger, self-righteousness as she realized what it looked like. What it _was_.

Riley Ackles shoved by Gray, two beers in hand, and sat next to Juvia, closer than what was necessary. Juvia took one, though she hardly ever drank, and tipped it into her mouth. She finally looked away from Gray, turning her attention to the guard. Gray dug his nails into his palm. It didn't stave off the way the bar throbbed around him, or the way his eyes pulsed with every beat of his heart, but the pain brought him some outlet.

He swallowed the lump in his throat and managed to get himself turned around. The exit never looked further away, or more blocked. A woman stood before the tall doors, her coral hair gleaming by the dull light. Gray made himself walk, shoving by her when she didn't immediately rush out of his way. The headache spiked. His nausea hit a peak. _Fuck._ Loke was talking at his back, keeping pace with him. He couldn't hear what the spirit said.

Someone grabbed his arm before he could experience the freedom of the outside world. His skin set to crawling. Turning, he faced the woman that had blocked his way.

Her mouth curled into a smile. "You dropped this." She held out his wallet.

Gray didn't grab it. Couldn't. Every part of his body felt like it was on fire. His stomach made it known in no uncertain terms that it was protesting. Bile rushed up his throat. The sickness was combatted by the very real need to be violent as his magic tried to wrestle from his grasp to steal the woman's life. _Woman, or demon?_ He didn't know. She looked like a human, but…

Confused and out of sorts, he wrenched from her grasp and spilled into the soaking night. He just barely made it to the side of the building before he emptied his guts on the cracked cobblestone.

"Fuck. What the hell?" came Loke's voice.

Gray retched again.

"Were you drinking or something? Or do you have a flu? What's going on?"

Not only could he not answer, Gray didn't _know._ His whole arm was burning cold; his head was cracking in two. He threw up until he dry-heaved, but didn't stop until the pressure in his head eased. He hunched there for several long minutes, gasping in breath after breath, soaked through by the rain, exhausted, before he gathered the strength to wipe his mouth on his sleeve. Standing was another issue entirely. Getting vertical invited his vision to double, then triple. He stumbled.

Loke took pity and threw Gray's arm over his shoulder. "Come on. I got your wallet off that chick. It doesn't look like she robbed you or anything." Not that he thought Gray cared much at the moment.

Gray stumbled after him, dazed. The pain in his father's mark settled down, but it was there, and the faint panging rage that always accompanied its awakening. It was hungry and fighting for control.

"Where is she?"

"Juvia? Inside still—"

"No. The chick with the pink hair."

"Gone," Loke replied. "She left after I took your wallet."

"I—I gotta find her."

Loke shook his head. "The only thing you have to do is get inside and brush your teeth." He started leading Gray away.

"No. She—I think she's a demon, Loke." He tried to struggle out of his friend's grasp. Loke tightened his hold.

"She looked like a regular girl to me. Chill out. You're all fucked up." Loke lengthened his steps, hurrying to Briar's Lock. The devil slayer was too out of it to put up much of a fight.

* * *

"I can't wait anymore," Lucy said behind a huge yawn. "I'm exhausted."

"I don't think they're coming back anyway," Happy said.

Natsu had to agree, on both fronts. He too was buckling under exhaustion's pressure.

Lucy stood and grabbed Natsu's T-shirt off the small dresser. Taking it to the washroom, she changed and washed her face. When she came out again, there was no conversation as she went directly to the bed and crawled between the sheets. Happy didn't even make a joke from his place on the loveseat, though whether that was because he was out of funnies or because Natsu told him to be quiet, Lucy had no idea.

The dragon slayer deposited the garbage from their takeout into the steel bin by the kitchenette, then came to the bed, clicking off lights as he went. Outside, the storm had started to die back, but in the distance, lightning darted across the sky, another storm chasing its tail. Lucy moved over so her back was against the wall, making room. Natsu clicked off the last of the lights, throwing them into darkness, then stripped down to his shorts. Lightning's pale light illuminated the room, silhouetting his body. He dropped to the mattress. Lucy adjusted so she was sort of beneath his weight. It was familiar and comforting and pulse-quickening. His lips found hers in a chaste kiss.

"G'night."

"Night," Happy added.

"Night," Lucy echoed.

She thought Natsu, with a full belly, would immediately drift off to sleep. He had a talent for such things, but his fingers drifted over her body instead, starting at her wrist and easing up to her elbow, her shoulder, and her neck, lingering where he hadn't dared before, feeling the swollen skin Lance's Henbridge's hands left behind. He scooted down and kissed the sensitive skin as silently as he could manage.

Lucy closed her eyes, aware of Happy just meters away, but also enjoying Natsu's touch. His tongue was hot on her skin. He kissed her throat again, then readjusted so his lips were against her temple. She relaxed some. For a second. Just in time, really, for him to start running his fingers over her body again. She trapped her lip between her teeth and let it happen, holding her breath as he eased from her throat down the centerline of her body, between her breasts. At her bellybutton she waited in anticipation, unsure if she was going to grab his hand and bring it to her hip, trapping him there in an effort to encourage him to stop, or if she'd just let him continue.

She needn't worry. Natsu found her hip on his own, squishing her closer to his body. She felt how excited he was through the thin fabric of her makeshift nightgown. There was a groan on her tongue. She withheld it but let him know she was unsatisfied by squeezing his bicep tight. Natsu's breath against her temple came out in a short, hot puff, burdened with his own frustrations. He kissed her again, using tongue and teeth this time, thinking that would make him feel better.

It didn't really. He came away and made his muscles relax, fighting for composure; striving for sleep.

He didn't have to try all that hard, though, dreams were pulling him under yet again.

* * *

Soundly sleeping didn't even begin to describe Cheria's state. In her bed, swaddled in a thick wool blanket while the air conditioning was cranked on high, she slept deeply, dreaming of the most peculiar bear-pig that enjoyed bubble gum ice cream.

A sharp crash and a fluent cuss brought her out of her dream in a hurry. Sitting up in bed, hair everywhere, she blinked and blinked, trying to adjust to this new state of being. Moonlight petered through her window, setting a small square aglow. In that cubic space, a pair of boots rested. Sort of. For an instant, before the person stumbled out of the light and back into the darkness.

It wasn't fear that took Cheria, but excitement. "Wendy?" She was the only one she could think that would dare climb through her window—and so clumsily, too.

"Heh. Didn't think you'd ever be accused of being a chick. A little girl at that."

"Fuck _off,_ Erik," snapped a man whose voice was choked with pain and impatience. It was familiar. It didn't _matter_ if Cheria recognized them or not, though. She sucked in a deep breath—maybe for a roar, maybe for a scream, she hadn't decided yet—when a cold hand clamped over her mouth.

"Listen," said a woman in a no-nonsense tone. "We don't have _time_ for silly games. Jellal is hurt and Wendy is dying."

"And Richard is dead," added a new voice, this one young and feminine.

Cheria felt all of the fight leave her system, like a balloon that had been popped. The hand went away and her bedside lamp clicked on, revealing her visitors. Crime Sorciere. Lamia Scale—Ooba in particular—was _not_ going to be happy that a group of rag-tag delinquents had broken into her guild. That was all secondary, though.

"Wendy's dying?"

It was Jellal that replied. "She was attacked late last night while she and Erza were on their way to Magnolia. Her state is critical." He was terribly pale. He winced with every breath he took, yet he put on a good face, even if he was weaving like a drunken man. Merdy covertly inched to his side and propped him up when he was on the verge of going down.

"Is this a joke?"

"Please, Cheria," Jellal said. "She needs your help. I promised Erza I wouldn't let her die."

 _Die._ No more Wendy Marvel. No more wondering if she liked the kiss or not, because she wouldn't be around to say either way. Cheria pushed back her blankets, deciding that there was no time to be shy. Not that she had much to be shy _about_. Since she knew Wendy wasn't in the area, she stopped wearing her nicer pajamas to bed. Crime Sorciere was graced with her double-rainbow kitten hood one-piece in all of its ripped up and faded glory.

"Why do you sleep in a wool blanket in a flannel onesie with the air conditioner cranked when its like, a hundred degrees out?" Sorano asked.

"Why do you do your makeup like your entertaining whoever is paying?" Cheria sniped back, in no mood to be harassed.

Erik doubled over laughing, the sound too loud. "That was a fucking good one, kid. Ah. She's got you there, Sorano." Sorano passed him off a rude gesture. Erik barred his teeth at her. "Keep thinking dirty at me. I like it."

Merdy ignored them. "Will you help or not? Jellal needs to be healed so we can move quickly."

Cheria was already calling her magic. All it took was a touch. Jellal's face cleared of the pain, his arm, which had been sluggishly bleeding him dry, plugged up, then began to heal, all of the ligaments and muscles going back to the place they were supposed to be. It took a lot of energy. Cheria did it slowly, wanting to be at her best when she got to Wendy.

Instead of the quiet Cheria was used to when she was working—people just got silent, afraid to disturb her; it wasn't like healing was difficult or anything, like, come on, right?—she was privy to a constant stream of jibes and curses and low laughter. Mostly it was Erik ribbing… well, everyone.

"Shut the hell up," Jellal said finally. He didn't raise his voice, but everyone fell mute.

Cheria finished up quickly after that. "What happened to her?" She didn't want to know, and yet she needed to.

Jellal rolled his shoulder back, testing its limitations. Cheria knew there would be no pain. She waited for the surprised look Jellal would give her and wasn't disappointed. Jellal stood straighter, looking like a new man. Now if only his cloak wasn't eviscerated and his hair wasn't caked with blood.

"I'll explain on the way."

Cheria didn't think twice about leaving her guild. She grabbed some clothes, a few hair ribbons, a pair of boots, her wallet and her wool blanket, stuffing it all into a too-small pack. She was ready in record time. She approached the window. "Start talking."


	17. Chapter 17

He was cold. Uncomfortably so. To make matters worse, his stomach felt like it was full of knives. Curling in on himself helped nothing.

For the first few days, Mother lay with him, brushing his hair back from his sweaty forehead and singing lowly while Zeref brought cold water for drinking. Natsu didn't want it. Not only could he not keep it down, he wanted something hot. He wanted to be swaddled in blankets tight enough that he couldn't breathe, then he wanted to be dunked in a bath full of scalding water. Anything to chase out the chills.

The only thing he got was his blankets torn away and a bath full of ice. Startling and, by his best guess, cruel. He cried until he had no more tears, then he fussed and made life difficult for everyone because he was miserable. By the fifth day, Mother was too tired to deal with him, so Zeref took her place, laying down on the bed and crushing Natsu to his chest. Sometimes he'd tell stories and even pull the blankets back up over them both, though he wasn't supposed to.

The dream had been whirling by until this moment. Now it slowed.

"Am I ever going to get better?" Natsu felt himself ask.

Zeref, curled around Natsu's back, pressed their cheeks together. The other boy's skin felt cold. "Of course, Natsu."

The dream sped forward again, showing Natsu that he only got worse. He lost weight drastically, his cheeks, once filled with baby fat, were hollowed out. He was bedridden with a diaper and a waste bin constantly at his side. He tossed and turned and complained about being cold even as he sweated. The last made his heart lurch: Mother stopped spending so much time with him, only coming now to feed him broth.

Natsu watched it all fly by in a blur, the days that slipped by in this tortured state, until the dream lagged again and came into proper focus. Mother came in with a bowl of broth as always, and rested it on the bedside table so she could help him sit up. He could tell by the way her face pinched that she hated to feel his bones prod through his skin. It was breaking her down bit by bit, wanting to help him and being unable to. She chewed her cheek and marched on with as much grace as he could ask.

When he was mostly vertical, she lowered herself to the mattress. It dipped beneath her weight.

"How are you today, Natsu?" She asked it in a strained voice, and not like she wanted the truth. Natsu lied for her.

"Hungry."

She smiled, it was watery, then grabbed up the bowl again and brought a spoon full of amber broth to his lips.

Natsu felt his stomach protest, and it hadn't even met his lips yet. He swallowed the lump in his throat and opened his mouth. He shouldn't have worried, Mother's hands were shaking so badly, she only managed to dribble the hot fluid down his front, burning him. It was so real, the pain sharp and startling, that Natsu gasped.

Mother swore, a rare thing, and rushed to get a cloth. In her haste she only spilled more, burning his legs now, and her hands. The bowl dropped, shattering, and sent broth and bits of clay everywhere. She hissed angrily and stood.

"I'm sorry, Mother," Natsu managed in a voice that wasn't his own, pinched with pre-pubescence, and laden with illness.

The anger vanished beneath the presence of a much stronger emotion. Mother pressed the back of her hand against her lips and closed her eyes. It didn't stop the tears.

Zeref entered and took her by the shoulders, pointing her toward the exit. "I'll clean this up and feed him, Mother. Go call the doctor again."

"The doctor doesn't know, Zeref," she said harshly.

"He didn't know yesterday. Today is a new day," he told her firmly.

"Nothing has changed."

He shook his head. "The sun has risen. Time has gone by. Everything is different. Go call on the doctor."

She left in a swirl of skirts and frustration.

"Why is Mother angry?" Natsu licked chapped lips with a tongue that was as dry as cotton.

Zeref sat on the edge of the bed and pushed Natsu's sweaty hair back. "She's not mad, Natsu. She's scared. She doesn't know what to do."

"Because I'm not getting better."

Zeref hesitated, then shook his head. "No, you're not."

"And the doctor doesn't know why."

"No, he doesn't," Zeref agreed.

Natsu started to cry again, huge wet tears. It was a wonder there was any liquid in his body to produce them. Maybe sadness had its own aquafer.

"I'm going to fix it," Zeref said. "I—I will, Natsu. You're going to be better again."

As soon as he said it, Natsu knew that it was a promise made in vain. Zeref was powerless to stop this, even if he prayed. Natsu wanted to believe in him, though. "How?"

"Just trust me."

Through the dream, Natsu felt Zeref's helplessness. His heart lurched and hurt with sympathy, something he didn't think he'd ever believe the dark mage would deserve.

Zeref said, "There has to be something. For all the magic in the world, there is a spell that will make you better."

Natsu's mouth moved without his permission, the words already predetermined, like he was living through a play. "You don't know."

"Not yet," Zeref said. "But I will. I swear."

Natsu closed his eyes without trying to eat anymore. Zeref lay down beside him, enveloping him again.

The dream shifted violently, strangely, time skipped, and perception. It was disorienting. The next time Natsu opened his eyes, they weren't really his own. He was still laying on his bed, still damp with sweat, but… this body wasn't his own. Not exactly, anyway. It took him a moment to realize that he was looking out at the world through a fringe of dark hair. Zeref's hair, and he was looking down at himself, as white as a ghost and frightfully still.

Through Zeref's eyes, Natsu watched Zeref lay his hand against his forehead, pushing back the pink locks. "Natsu?" His voice was full of sleep yet, but with every silent second that passed, he became more alert. And scared. "Natsu?"

Natsu watched dream-him, and hoped that the boy, looking smaller and frailer than ever, would open his blue-stained eyelids. His blue-stained lips. Both remained closed.

"Natsu?" Zeref grabbed his shoulder and pulled him on his back. He flopped lifelessly. There was no mistake, he'd fled from this world. Very acutely, Natsu felt the hollow pit open in Zeref's stomach as he came to the same conclusion. Zeref didn't cry, still too numb for that.

The dragon slayer thought that would be the end of the dream—prayed—but it still held him firmly, moving quickly once again. They were in the kitchen. Mother wasn't crying, either, just staring blankly as Zeref relayed his find. Her rose-gold locks were especially limp and lackluster, framing her red face. She was a husk of herself. That pained Natsu more than the seeming termination of his life. She was so… vibrant when he'd first discovered her. A woman he could love so much, if he had the chance.

She said only three words: "I'll make arrangements."

They were on the move again, the walls dissolving. The next thing Natsu knew, he was beneath a wide cherry tree, still as Zeref. Valentina came to his side, a piece of raspberry pie in her hand, wrapped in a clean white cloth. She didn't try to hold it out, only bringing it because she thought it was the right thing to do.

"I'm sorry, Zeref."

Looking at her through his brother's eyes (Natsu was saving _that_ passing acceptance to turn over later) was like seeing her anew. She'd always been beautiful, but now she was more. A shining light in the coming darkness. A beacon that could call Zeref back into port before the storm became too rough and there was nothing left.

Zeref ignored the call. "I promised him."

Valentina lowered herself to the ground next to him, close enough that their bodies were touching. She smelled like baking, as always. Vanilla and cinnamon and nutmeg and everything Zeref thought he wanted, everything he thought he'd have, even if she was a baker's daughter and he was to be a scholar. Class didn't matter, not when she was all he thought about.

Valentina turned her wide glassy eyes on him. "Promised?"

Zeref's throat went tight. Natsu couldn't escape the channeling of the suffocating feeling. "I promised him I'd make him better. And I didn't."

"Oh, Zeref..." Her arms went around his shoulders. "This isn't your fault." She was soft and warm. This was the closest he'd ever been to her. Natsu felt how much Zeref wished it was under difference circumstances.

Though he was a strange passenger, an intruder in this, what felt like a private moment, Natsu marveled with morbid curiosity when Zeref's eyes got damp, his throat smaller still. He felt Every. Little. Thing. Every pain. Every string of love stretched so thin, it was on the precipice of breaking. Zeref had never seemed more human.

"I want to fix it, Valentina."

The tree faded. Suddenly, Natsu was staring at an expanding graveyard, he and Zeref all alone. The light of the moon was the only illumination the nighttime offered, yet he could see everything clearly: the small pile of dirt that looked very, very fresh, the child-sized gravestone that was whiter than bone.

Zeref sniffed, lifting his hand and wiping his nose. "I'm sorry, Natsu."

Natsu thought he was apologizing again for his death, but then he became aware of the object in Zeref's hand. _Seriously_ , he thought, and willed himself to wake, because that was next-level morbid.

The dream held him hard. There was no escape from this.

He watched the dirt get dug up, one shovelful after the other, felt the fatigue in Zeref's arms.

He didn't stop. Even when calluses formed on his hand and popped, even when the shovel left splinters in his palms, even when his back felt so bent, it could break.

Everything happened within several blinks of the eye, though every time Natsu looked, the moon was lower and lower in the sky, the clouds had shifted. Hours had passed, long, grueling.

He didn't slow until the dull _clunk_ of metal hitting wood trilled out in the quiet. It wasn't done yet, though, he had to dig out the entirety of the box. Zeref dropped the shovel and used his hands, impatiently throwing away the excess dirt. Natsu wished he could close his eyes for this part. Zeref wanted to, too. There was no reprieve. Using the shovel again, Zeref stood and jammed the blade inside the casket's lid and heaved. He didn't have to try that hard, it wasn't sealed with much other than a few already-rust-eaten nails.

Natsu learned quickly that looking at his small dead self wasn't as bad as bending and picking him up, cradling the cold body in his arms. Rigor had come and gone, now he was just limp. It had been three days since he'd last drawn breath.

"Ethernano will keep you, Natsu," Zeref whispered. "Until I can bring you home."

Time slipped by again, the scenery altered, bringing Natsu—still trapped within Zeref's body—into Zeref's room. There was a book in his hand that he wrung mercilessly, and a manic feeling in his chest. Natsu named it: hope. Valentina sat on the bed, her hands folded in her belled skirts. She watched every one of Zeref's agitated movements.

"Are you going to tell me, or leave me to wonder?"

He stilled for the first time in days. "I found a passage, Valentina. In a text book."

"A passage?"

"I've been researching ways to bring him back. I devised a way to create a gate to step through time. Once it's open, I'll simply go through, find a healthy Natsu, and bring him into the present."

She was silent for a long time. Zeref only looked at her, willing her to share in his excitement. Yet, when she opened her mouth next, it wasn't to take part in his pleasure. "Zeref, you cannot change the flow of time."

"You're wrong," he argued. "It's all right here." He approached with the book held out. Valentina looked at it warily.

"Zeref… It sounds so wonderful. I wish it were true." She looked like her heart was breaking. "I know I'm no scholar, but think about it. Even if such a thing were possible, he was _sick_. You don't know where the Sweating Sickness came from, and you can't cure it… it's likely he'd just get sick again. You'd live through the heartbreak once more."

Zeref chewed his cheek so hard, his mouth filled with copper. "Valentina..."

As gently as possible, she said, "It's impossible, Zeref." She stood and approached him, grabbing his hands and working the book from his cold grasp. "Please. We all need to keep looking forward."

"But…"

She kissed him softly, squarely on the mouth. It would have been wonderful, if it weren't so full of fear and pleading. "Let him rest."

For the sweetest of Valentina's kisses, this was one dog that would not lie.

This time, Natsu was prepared for the dream to swing. Wearing Zeref's skin, he paced the hard marble floor of the university. With every footfall, the tread of his sandal _thwacked_.

"You're making me restless, Zeref. Please stop."

Zeref turned, affording Natsu a view of the speaker. It was a tall man with a thick white beard, long and flowing. He wore the robes of a professor. In his hand was a round hat topped with a golden tassel. He worried at it so much, he was bending the bowl out of shape.

"You don't understand, Professor Atticus. The R-System _can_ work. It will."

"Even if it did, I cannot permit you to try such a thing. It goes against everything Ankhseram teaches. Life is sacred, Zeref, and everything has an order. I am saddened by your brother's passing, but there is nothing that can be done."

"I just _told_ you what can be done. Give me the resources, Professor. Please. I can't fund it all myself."

"There is a reason no one has tried before—"

"Because they're afraid!" Zeref said.

" _Because it requires a human sacrifice,_ " Atticus hissed in a much quieter voice. "If that's not reason enough, though I can see no reason why it shouldn't be, any that try will be _punished_. You'll be cursed, Zeref. Leave it be."

"This is nonsense!" While Atticus strived to be quiet, Zeref's voice was rising too high. "I don't believe in curses. Only a superstitious fool would ignore the advancement before him."

Atticus was firm. "My decision is final. Stop speaking this way."

Zeref squeezed his hand into a fist so tight, his nails dug into his palm. A million miles away, Natsu felt his own palm ringing dully, the thorn in his hand throbbing as he mimicked dream-Zeref's movements. "Have you never lost someone you loved? Is there _no one_ you want to bring back into this life?"

The man actually faltered. He recovered his faculties shortly thereafter, though. "I will tell you once more: venture off this path, Zeref, or you will be expelled."

Natsu didn't need to see the rest to know that Zeref pursued it anyway. The truth of the matter was horrifying. Death to bring around life. _My life_.

He rejected the knowledge with everything he had, fighting tooth and nail to claw his way out of the dream. It had a few more things to show him, though.

The man Zeref chose to die was one he'd found on the streets. A man that had been begging for years, drinking until he was blind, then wallowing in his own filth. It wasn't a decision that was made lightly; every time Zeref thought about it, his heart would turn, his stomach would clench, and his palms would get sweaty. _I can't do this,_ he thought a hundred times, but Natsu knew that there was resolution in his heart, the stubborn kind that overcame even fear and disgust.

The next landscape the dream showed him was the basement of Mother's house, the large square room that he somehow recognized from hours of playing when it was too cold to do so outside. It was illuminated with several light lacrima. In the corners were cobwebs—on the ceiling, on the ground. It had never been so unkempt before. In the center of the room was a new table, long and wooden, upon which sat a glass tube. Inside was a boy. Messy pink hair, slack lips and closed eyes, unchanged since the day Zeref tugged him from the earth. _That's me,_ Natsu thought numbly, feeling surreal. Just as quickly, he admonished the thought. It was a _dream_.

From the shadows, the homeless man stood. "Thank you for letting me sleep here last night. It's been a long time since I've been warm in the winter." He spoke with a lisp, two of his front teeth missing.

"You enjoyed your cider?" Zeref asked, looking for more graciousness. Natsu understood too clearly: it helped with the guilt.

"Yes, Sir. And the hot meal. I don't want to intrude anymore, though."

"Stay awhile yet. It's no bother." Zeref's hands were shaking. There was a knife up the sleeve of his robe, it dug into his skin hard enough that it punctured, leaving behind a small, neat slash. The pain and the blood that followed were all secondary to what he was gearing himself up for.

"Why are you so kind?" the man asked.

"Because everyone has great capacity for cruelty," Zeref said numbly. He couldn't bring himself to do it yet. "I'll make you lunch."

The man bowed his head. "I'm undeserving of this gift."

"Yes," Zeref agreed. "But you will earn it." That too helped placate his conscience.

The basement turned into the bedroom in the blink of an eye. Valentina sat on Zeref's bed in less clothes than Natsu had ever seen her in before, stripped of her bodice, so now she wore her undershirt—some white frilly thing that dipped low so he could see the line of her breasts, and her skirts. Through their connection, Natsu felt how Zeref desired her, but that wasn't the primary thing on his mind.

"I want to talk to you about something, Valentina."

She blinked, looking up at him through her dark lashes. "Yes?"

"I found a way that will work." He was looking for reinforcement, for someone else to stoke his conviction.

Her lustful gaze turned immediately wary. "…To make what work, exactly?"

"A way to bring him back," Zeref rushed to say, sensing already that this wasn't going to go the way he wanted.

"You told me there was to be no more," she whispered. "Zeref, you've already been expelled."

"I know, but it was worth it because this is different. I sold all of Father's tools and had a lacrima built—"

"Zeref—"

"It's here already. I have the spell, and all of the ingredients—"

"Just let it go, please. This path is poisonous. It will only lead to pain. Your professors said—"

"What do they know, Valentina? Nothing. Nothing at all. I have a chance to bring him back. Just listen."

She stood. "I won't. Please, Zeref, you're hurting yourself and everyone else. Your mother needs you to take care of her—"

"I can't," he snapped. "She's done nothing but mourn. She only cries when I offer solutions—"

"Because you _can't bring back the dead_!" Valentina's voice was high and thready.

"Shut up."

"No. He's gone, Zeref."

"Shut up."

"Let it go and let everyone heal."

"I promised him!"

"I know." She made her voice soft. "But, Zeref, he won't want to live like this."

"He can't say if he's dead, can he?" Zeref asked, feeling suddenly manic. He strode forward and grabbed her arm roughly. She yipped, scared, as he tugged her violently toward the exit. "Get out. Get out and stay out."

"Please—"

He shoved her out so hard, she tripped on her skirts and fell to the floor, curls bouncing, eyes going wide. The door slammed, jamming the nail in the proverbial coffin. Zeref's resolve was set.

 _I don't want to know anymore_ , Natsu thought viciously, and fought with everything he had, scrabbling for the surface of the very long well of dreaming.

* * *

Lucy wasn't ready to wake when Natsu's elbow found her ribs, bringing her to consciousness in a harsh and startling way. Blinking, she took in the lightened world. The sun had risen, and, for the first time in days, it was peeking through a mat of separating clouds. It was still too early, though.

Natsu sat up, hair askew, eyes wide. The hand that was on her waist—somehow worked beneath her shirt as they slept—was cold and clammy. On his forehead was beaded sweat. The reprimand Lucy had been working her way toward fizzled.

"What's wrong?"

He didn't seem to hear her, or see her, for that matter, looking at something very far away. She touched his cheek, concerned by the rapid rise and fall of his chest and the animalistic aura around him. "Natsu?"

Slowly, his glassy eyes found hers and focused. "Lucy?" He squeezed her side, making sure that _this_ here was in fact the real world.

"Are you alright?" She searched his dark eyes; he was whiter than a sheet. If he wasn't holding her so tight, she'd feel the way his muscles quivered with fear-fueled adrenaline. "Do you feel sick?"

 _Sweating Sickness._ It wasn't all that hard to recall the way his muscles were knotted, right along with his stomach, the pail at the side of his bed, and Zeref at his back, trying in vain to hold him in this world. He swallowed, Adam's apple bobbing. _It wasn't real._ "Just a stupid dream." He felt dumb admitting it, getting riled up like that over some silly scenario his brain created for _whateverfuckingreason_. He said it aloud, though, because doing so felt like banishing his dream to the dark realms of _it's fantasy._

"You've been having a lot of them." She brushed his hair back from his forehead, too concerned to be worrying about their closeness.

"I—yeah. I guess." He released his hold on her waist and fingered the cold nub in his palm. Even through the bandage Lucy gifted him with, the skin was hard, like there was a glass marble trapped inside.

"Do you want to tell me about them?"

Natsu glanced toward the couch where Happy slept. He could hear his friend's even breaths and knew he was still asleep. "I don't know, Lucy. Not really. They're just dreams." Yet even as he said it, he knew he was going to spill. "I was a kid." He didn't remember ever being that small. He wished he could, so he could totally excise these images. "I got sick. Zeref was there."

"Zeref?" Lucy repeated. What she wanted to say was, _again?_

Natsu nodded and kept going, skipping over most of the details, not keen on explaining how _real_ everything felt, how he could _smell_ Valentina. How he could _feel_ the soup's broth scalding his skin. How he could feel Zeref's warmth at his back. Things that you were never _supposed_ to feel in dreams. "And then I died, and I started dreaming through Zeref's eyes." He glanced at the blonde beneath him. She didn't _look_ like she was judging him, or getting ready to mock him, she was just listening intently.

"I woke up just as he was about to sacrifice this guy to bring me back." He could still _taste_ Zeref's guilt, the burden of the decision, and the resolve to follow through with it.

Lucy said the only thing she could. "It's just a dream, probably brought on by stress, Natsu."

"Stress?" Natsu asked in a low whisper.

"You know," Lucy matched his volume. "Waiting for other members of the guild to show up." People that were shockingly absent. "Trying to catch this murderer… us." She tagged the last on and held her breath for his response.

"Fairy Tail will come," he said with as much conviction as he could muster. But really, where _was_ everyone? It had been _days._ Days and days. _Maybe they're really not…_ he shook the thought from his head and tried to focus on other things. "The murders… we'll solve it, Lucy. We get closer every day." Only, he felt like they hadn't made _any_ progress. He grabbed hold of her waist again and squeezed. "And… this… we should be easy."

Should be, but she hadn't been making it that way.

He came in and brushed her lips in a kiss that was supposed to expel all of his negative thoughts, and the lingering feeling his dream left behind. She responded to him, looping her arm around his neck, bringing him close to feeling as normal as he could possibly while doing something that they didn't normally do. The apprehension of his dream bowed out for the apprehension of _this._ This excitement and this new feeling. She stapled him to the ground more firmly than she could imagine by just returning his kiss. He let his hand ease up her shirt further. Her skin burned the coldness out of his palm. Maybe it wasn't permanent, but it felt better in the interim. He banished Happy on the couch just a little way away, sending him from his thoughts, and went looking a little higher.

Lucy let him get all the way to her topmost rib before she caught his wrist and turned her head to the side. "Wait."

Natsu leaned back, body feeling hot. "What is it?" He didn't _want_ to stop.

Lucy's stomach churned with nervousness. _But you don't want to start out with secrets._ "If we're really going to do this… we should talk about something."

Natsu dropped his head to her shoulder and gathered in a huge breath, not _wanting_ to hear what she was going to say, but recognizing that stubborn and determined look in her eye.

"Well," Lucy said. She wished she could see his face. Yet, it was easier, staring at the ceiling. "We should talk about a lot of things, actually. About you leaving, and— _this_ —and a—about the night you left. I don't think it's a big deal, but Loke says that it's the right thing to do. If only just to—um—" What the _hell_ was the phrasing Loke used? "To—clear the air, I guess. So you're not surprised. Or anything." She knew she was rambling. She pinched her lips together and made herself shut up.

Natsu stared at the darkness, head still in the crux between her neck and her shoulder. "It's about you and Gray?" From this vantage point, he could sort of see the dark bruising on her neck. It'd gotten worse during the night.

"Yeah."

He waited. And waited. "Just say it, Lucy." He heard her swallow.

She gathered all the courage she could. "We were together."

He was silent.

"Just once. Only for—" Her face was so hot; her heart felt like it was going to explode. "Only for the night. But it was a mistake. And now things are different. He and Juvia are a thing. And you and me…" It felt very presumptuous, but she said it anyway. "We are."

He still hadn't moved.

"Aren't we?"

She felt his breath come out in a hot blast. He gathered it all back in again just as quick, cooling her to the bone. And then his body weight was gone, his warmth with it.

"Natsu."

He kept his back to her as he yanked on his pants.

"Natsu, please."

Lucy's voice melded with Valentina's. ' _Zeref, please._ ' The room felt too small. Not enough oxygen.

"Natsu." Lucy stopped trying to be quiet for Happy's sake. "Where are you going?"

He grabbed his shirt and yanked it over his head, then searched for his boots. They were kicked off sort of under the bed. Bending, he snatched them out. Lucy grabbed his wrist and held him still. Her touch burned.

"Don't leave. It doesn't change anything. It was just a mistake."

Natsu finally looked at her. "Just let me go clear my head, Lucy."

He didn't even look mad. Just blindsided.

"Are you going to come back?" She hated how uncertain her voice sounded, the question squeaking out.

Natsu didn't reply because he honestly didn't know. Though he wanted to, forgoing the door wasn't an option; the windows were all too small to slip from. He used long steps to take him from the motel and prayed that he wouldn't bump into anyone he didn't want to.

The door snapped closed.

"He'll come back, Lucy," Happy said into the poisoned-feeling silence, making his presence known.

Lucy pressed her hands into her hot eyes.

* * *

Natsu didn't know where to go. First to the river, but with his dream ringing in his head—getting sick and being carried home by Zeref—and the truer memory of Lucy lying down beside him countless times, he couldn't stay there long. Leaving, he was enthusiastically chased by the vivid memory of that first night in the motel, coming to Lucy's side and asking, _'Did you think of us while we were gone?'_

 _'Of course I did_.'

Of course. Of course.

And yet...

 _Gray._

He tried to be mad and was at least marginally successful. It was easy when it came to Gray; there wasn't much the ice mage did that didn't piss Natsu off. Imagining him with Lucy... in a way Natsu hadn't been yet...

He thought he walked aimlessly through Magnolia, past the canal, the park, a few food carts, the solar tree, but his feet knew exactly where they took him: Fairy Tail. The building was as crumpled as ever, looking desolate and indigent. It was as untouched as it was the day it fell, and would likely remain that way until…

Until the rest of Fairy Tail came home and they put it together again.

He felt the wave of hopelessness he'd been staving off push at his walls. He clenched his fists hard enough that his palm ached and his bones creaked, and beat it back, not wanting to be a slave to that emotion, or any other. It was powerful, an unwavering force that was determined to bring him down. He thought of all the ways things could be worse. People could be dead. As far as he knew, everyone had survived this last year. And Lucy and Gray could be together still.

He tried not to think about all the time they spent together on that fucking balcony. Doing who knew what.

 _'We were together.'_

He thrust his hands through his hair and thought maybe he wished she hadn't said anything at all.

Without much of a goal in mind, other than to be closer to something familiar, he stepped on to the guild's rubble. It shifted beneath his feet, trying to drag him down to his knees. He adjusted and overcame the shifting stone, bits of glass and wood splinters. For another few steps, anyway. Then he ventured out on a thin piece of board stretching over a hollow pit. It cracked, worn by the sunlight and the rain. He went down. Seconds before he slipped into what was once the mess hall, he caught himself, fingers sliding over the splintered wood and digging in to keep him up. His feet dangled in the air.

Cursing fluidly didn't help him get back upright, but it made him feel marginally better as he clambered, feeling careless and stupid. Halfway out, one knee up while the other leg still dangled, the air got heavy with magic. He paused to watch the space just inches from his nose swirl with shadow. They writhed like living creatures, and maybe they were, who was he to say, and deposited their passenger.

Natsu didn't have to look up from the pair of jet black boots to know that his dreams had taken form in a very real way, but he did anyway.


	18. Chapter 18

Magnolia was on the horizon, visible through the early morning fog. Levy walked with purpose and did her very best not to dwell on Erza's sullen silences and filthy looks. At first she thought it was because the woman was upset about Wendy. And that was part of it. But it wasn't all. Every now and again she'd say something pointed about lies and secrets that would make Levy falter, thinking about her Council mission and the secrecy Draculos required them to keep. She always recovered; Gajeel, on the other hand, was getting twitchy, tired of Erza's short temper, so much so that Levy thought it would be he that finally snapped and asked Erza what in the good hell she was talking about, but it was Carla. Carla who hadn't slept very much at all, and was suffering from her temper being on a very short and very brittle leash. Carla, who was still struggling to keep her transformation in place so she could firstly check on Wendy with ease, and secondly carry her every now and again.

"Nothing," was Erza's short reply. "I just think integrity and truthfulness are characteristics to be held above all others."

That was the end of the snippy comments, but not the dirty looks. She had something to say. Levy kept waiting for it to bubble over; Erza was mute, much better at keeping her tongue in check now. A year away from Fairy Tail had taught her an ounce of patience. Levy didn't imagine that he was something that would last, but for now…

Gajeel came to Levy's side and tugged her back a few feet. Levy fell back behind Erza, Lily and Carla. When she was a safe distance away and no one seemed to notice her absence, focused as they were on Magnolia on the horizon, she leaned into Gajeel and whispered, "What is it?"

"Look," he hushed back and pointed.

Levy followed his finger, looking around Erza and Carla carrying Wendy. Magnolia stretched and stretched, like a dirty boot print, grey and depressed, filled with muddy rainwater. It was dingy, even in the light of the sun. Looking at it made Levy feel sad. It was such a beautiful town when she first joined Fairy Tail. "Do you think it'll ever go back to what it was?"

"Eh?"

She took her eyes away from the city to look at Gajeel. "It's ruined."

He hesitated, then shook his head. "Maybe on the surface it's wrecked, but it can be rebuilt." He looked uncomfortable saying it, unused to placating anyone's woes. "That's not what I'm looking at, though. Over there." He pointed to the northern corner of the city. From this vantage point, almost everything was visible. Including the dark cloud of what could only be Ethernano.

"Another drain site," Levy breathed, recognizing it for what it was.

"Yeah, looks like it's in action. We should ditch these guys and go check it out."

Levy gnawed on her lip. "I want to get Wendy settled first."

Gajeel said, "We might miss our opportunity."

Levy knew he was right and strived to be practical. Wendy was hurt, but Carla and Erza were with her. She'd have the best care they could physically offer her.

At the head of the pack, Erza turned to glower at them. "Why are you lagging behind?"

Levy lifted her voice and said, "Gajeel and I are going to find Porlyusica, Erza. We'll send her your way."

The look Erza gave them was brimming with suspicion. She didn't get an opportunity to voice what was bugging her; Lily sidetracked the conversation. "From here, it looks like Fairy Tail is still rubble." They all turned their eyes outwards. Lily was correct, even from so far away, it looked squashed. "We need somewhere to let Wendy rest."

"Where are we going to find a place to accommodate all of us?" Carla sounded fragile, on the verge of breaking from exhaustion and stress.

"Briar's Lock Motel is still operational," Levy offered. She knew because she'd spent months looking over the Council's compiled damage reports for this region after the Tartarus attack, never quite able to fully distance herself from it.

"Then that's where we'll go," Erza said decisively. "Bring Porlyusica there." The command wasn't lost on Levy. _Bring her. 'Escort her so you can't go wandering_ ,' is what she didn't say. "And be careful. We were attacked in Raven's Canyon, but that doesn't mean that there aren't more enemies here as well."

"Yes," Levy agreed. "You guys, too." She looked to Lily, half expecting him to join them.

The cat wavered, then came to a decision. "I'll stay with Wendy."

Gajeel nodded once, firmly, then directed himself toward Porlyusica's cottage. Levy rushed to keep up.

* * *

"Zeref." Natsu looked from Zeref's shoes, up, up, up. He was in his customary robes, looking as pale as usual. In his hand was a thick black book, leather bound. It was old; Natsu could _smell_ the crusty pages, dry and delicate. He could _feel_ the sick power emanating from it's binding. Whatever it was, he didn't like it. He scrambled out of the hole into a more favorable position. Splinters dug into the pads of his fingers. It should have been painful, but between the cold in his hand (it had never hurt so badly) and the adrenaline, he couldn't think about something as stupid as that. This time when he stood, the rubble shifted but he didn't fall through. "You have some nerve coming here."

"Part of me hates that you look at me like this now." Zeref's smile was as small and sad as ever. "So full of rage. It never used to be that way."

Natsu was hit hard with his dream, with the hopelessness and lament that lingered there. _Not real. Not real_. He gathered his resolve and ignored the dark mage's strange words. "Come to get what you deserve? I'm going to enjoy kicking your ass." All he had to do was look around at the ruins that was Magnolia and he had enough ammunition to fuel his fury for a long, long time. The sympathy and confusion generated by his dream lost some of its hold.

Until Zeref said, "I came to complete the rest of last night's memory, actually… You woke before it was through."

Natsu faltered. What he wanted to ask was, _'How the hell do you know about that_?' Admitting any knowledge of it seemed like a bad idea, though. "I don't know what you're talking about." His fire came to his hands when he asked, scalding hot. "Quit blabbing and—"

"I went through a lot of trouble to implant that memory pod in your palm. A girl nearly died to make sure you recalled who you are. The least you could do is listen."

Natsu caught on one thing: girl. The rest of Zeref's sentence fell to the wayside. "Those murders? You're behind them?"

Zeref sighed. "Well... yes. And no. I told Eileen and Akio to wait until we exhausted this avenue. But they're impatient. All those lives..." He looked sad again. Blackness licked at his knuckles, overbearing and dangerous power caressing his body, begging to be released; the feeling it left behind was haunting. Every one of Natsu's senses told him to run. He stayed, as stubborn as a bull. Good thing, too. Zeref clenched his fingers and hauled on a hard face and the magic fell away.

"I can't even mourn their passing, for fear of all that will die if I do," Zeref muttered. Louder, he said, "I actually meant your healer, Natsu. She and her party were intersected in Raven's Canyon to give this time to unfold."

 _Healer._..? There was only one that Natsu knew of. "Wendy?"

"Is that what you call her? I just thought of her as the girl that was supposed to die," Zeref said flippantly. "She's stubborn, though. Her love for life is astonishing."

Natsu's tongue felt thick. "Why would you attack her?"

Zeref explained, "Don't think I enjoyed sending my demons to do it, but the memory pod needed time to work. If she showed and healed you, negating its effects, I would have to turn to other, more drastic measures."

Against all odds, Natsu recognized that determined look on Zeref's face, the one that said _not yet._

 _It's fake,_ Natsu thought viciously. _The only thing you know about Zeref is that he needs to pay for what he's done._ He called more magic into his hand and imagined a scenario where he _did_ something with it. His palm felt icy. It was a feeling that was slowly trying to take over his body. _Focus._ "You had no right!" _Wendy..._

"It was either her life or countless others!" The hand Zeref used to hold the book was unsteady. He noticed the same time Natsu did and looked rather annoyed by the human response. He took a deep breath and composed himself. In a calmer voice, he said, "Believe it or not, this way was easiest. The time has come, Natsu. One way or another, you'll remember you're my brother and become the monster I need you to be."

"You're kidding, right?" Natsu didn't know what else to say. That dream was between he and Lucy. No one else _knew_ about it. He drew the only conclusion he could.

"I don't joke much anymore," Zeref said blandly.

"Drop the book and let's do this, I'm sick of looking at you." It wasn't entirely true, he kept looking for the boy in his dreams, the one that patiently fed him broth, told him stories, held him when he was sick. He shrugged off his need to remain sedentary and swung at Zeref, thinking action would put his thoughts right. It always worked before.

Fire singed the hem of Zeref's robes but that was all; he'd easily sidestepped the attack. "You're no match for me as you currently are."

That only made Natsu angrier. He lifted his foot and snapped it at Zeref's middle. The rubble beneath his feet rolled, throwing him slightly off balance, making it easier for Zeref to catch his leg and toss him to the ground. Natsu hit hard, wood and glass digging into his body, trying to slip inside his shirt to make him bleed. He attempted to get up. Zeref used his foot to pin him back to the ground.

"Let me show you what became of Valentina and Mother." There was zeal to his eyes. "It's important that you understand where you came from, Natsu. What you really are. _Who._ "

 _No._ Natsu grabbed Zeref's leg and let his fire engulf the dark mage. Zeref didn't try to defend himself, just let it come.

Natsu realized why a second later: he couldn't sustain his magic; a deep dark pit was calling to him. He was falling, falling, falling into dream. _Memory_.

* * *

He hadn't wanted to see the man die, but he watched anyway, because that's what you did when you forced someone to suffer. The only words Zeref said to him as he drew the blade across his throat was, 'This is how you earn my kindness.' Every inch it slid across the man's bearded throat, his hand shook badly. Seeing the blood made his breath come short. Natsu felt just as sickly entrapped, looking at the world through Zeref's eyes.

The way Zeref convinced himself that this was worth it was by telling himself that while yes, he was taking this man's life, he wasn't _wasting_ it. Natsu would live much better than this man had chosen to. He'd grow and love and laugh. He'd hurt and cry, feel a myriad of things all at once, so many that he would be overwhelmed. It would be terrible and wonderful, exactly how life was meant to be.

The blood slipped down the man's front. He stopped thrashing—not that he fought all that hard to begin with; he'd snuck upstairs while Mother was sleeping and had stolen a bottle of mulled wine and finished it. He was drunker than a skunk. So drunk he didn't even realize his grave was opening wide like a maw, ready to swallow him whole.

When the gurgling had just about stopped, Zeref dragged the man toward the giant lacrima that sat along the back wall. This was the tricky part. He shoved the man into the hungry crystal. It absorbed him quickly. Then he grabbed Natsu's pale and limp body out of its Ethernano encasement. Lastly, he needed energy, a catalyst to make it all come together. From the beat up work bench, he gathered up another lacrima, this one so overfull with magic, it was on the verge of explosion. The power hummed out of its cracking surface. Natsu felt Zeref's heart palpitate as again he went through the process of generating the explosion. Enhancement magic combined with an explosion spell of his own. If his calculations were correct, the force generated should be enough to activate the R system. Should be enough to thrust this man's life into Natsu's. Should be enough to fix everything that was wrong in Zeref's world. And if it went wrong and the lacrima didn't absorb the blast... well, half of the city would be a crater. _It'll work_. It had to; this was the only option he had left.

Looking into Natsu's chubby and chalky face, Zeref said, "Mother won't cry anymore, Natsu. She'll be happy again. We'll all be happy again."

Natsu was privy to Zeref's internal struggle. His terror. He didn't _want_ to die if things went wrongly. Yet, he didn't want to live like this any longer either. He honestly felt like he had to try.

Inside the lacrima, the light was leaving the homeless man's eyes. It was time. The lacrima began to glow, absorbing his life-force. _I can do this. I can do this,_ Zeref chanted. _Natsu will be home. Only one man has to die for Natsu to come home. It's alright. I can do this_. He summoned his magic. It was still new to him; it slipped away once before he could call it back and harness it properly to make it do what he wanted. The explosion he created came hot and fast. The smaller, broken lacrima, already unsteady, exploded with little provocation, lighting up the basement like a little sun. The heat it generated was overwhelming. Zeref closed his eyes and turned his face away.

The world turned black.

Natsu half expected that to be the end of it. How foolish he was. Time passed; he couldn't say how much before he opened his eyes. Dark hair obscured his vision. He was still experiencing his life _before_ the present era, living through Zeref. _No_ , he thought viciously. _You're experiencing all of the things the Zeref wants you to. These aren't actually his memories_. But everything was so real, from the feel of the cold concrete beneath his back, to the tingles in his fingers where the magic used to be, to the smell of burning hair. _Mine. Zeref's_. He sucked in a dust-choked breath and coughed. Someone else joined him. His heart catapulted into his throat. Though he felt sick, he sat up and peered through the grey smoke. Small fires burned in every corner of the room. Between his outstretched legs was a crater in the floor where the lacrima used to be, burned right down to the earth trapped below the concrete.

"Zeref!" Mother's voice came down the stairs, full of fear. "Zeref! Are you down there?"

Zeref took a small breath; it was all his lungs could handle. "I'm here, Mother."

"Thank the _gods_." She sounded normal to Zeref in that moment, his mother once more, not the husk he knew her to be. "I think there was an earthquake. Tell me you're okay."

Sitting up hurt. He did so anyway, eager to see the result of his experiment. Through the smoke, a small figure fidgeted. Pale. Pink all over, hair, skin, cheeks.

"Zeref!" Mother's sandals on the stairs were loud, her steps uncertain. "Answer me!"

He couldn't. Clambering on hands and knees, he crawled through the hard bits of rock and other rubble to where Natsu blinked out into the world with new eyes, eyes darker than night.

 _It worked. It worked_. What did the university know? What did Mother or Valentina know? They were all wrong. It could be done.

Mother came to the landing. "Zeref—" She trailed off when she saw what he did.

Zeref touched Natsu's cheek just to make sure he was real. His skin was warm. Natsu lifted his hand and grabbed Zeref's wrist, as if holding him in place. It was disorienting for Natsu the passenger to watch himself, small and still frail, get used to breathing again. Using Zeref's mouth, he asked, "Do you see, Mother?"

She didn't respond. Zeref kept his eyes trained on his brother, afraid he'd disappear, so he could only guess at the expression on her face. "Mother? Mother, do you see? Mother?"

"Zeref..."

He touched Natsu's forehead to see if there was still a fever. He was as warm as any living person was meant to be and no more. "It worked." He gathered Natsu in for a tight hug. And Natsu hugged him back.

"Ze—ref."

 _Zeref_. Natsu couldn't quite quantify the intense feeling in his chest—in _Zeref's_ chest. He'd never felt happier in his life, not even when Igneel burst from his body and made himself known. The freedom from the guilt and the pain was shockingly immediate. Zeref started to cry, bringing the dragon slayer right along for the ride. "Yes, Natsu. Are you alright? How are you feeling? Thirsty? Hungry? Tired?"

"...No."

Distantly, he heard Mother take a small step toward them. "Is it really…?"

" _Yes._ " Without looking away from Natsu, Zeref extend his hand, waiting for Mother's. She took it; her palms were clammy. Her breath got short.

"Really?"

Zeref pulled her to her down to her knees. Neither of them looked to the homeless man crumpled and whiter than a sheet. His sacrifice hadn't been in vain, but Zeref couldn't give him the credit he was due; he couldn't take his mind away from this miracle.

Through Zeref, Natsu watched as Mother touched his forehead. As soon as she determined that he was real, she threw her arms around him and sobbed uncontrollably, muttering again and again, "My baby is home. My baby."

Zeref encircled them both, feeling like he had everything. His nose was tucked into Mother's rose-gold hair when he felt the first pang of coldness. He tried to dismiss it, but it only grew. And grew. And grew until he could ignore it no longer.

"M—Mother—"

"What is it, Zeref?" She didn't sound concerned, or even like she was really listening. She just hugged the resurrected Natsu while tears streamed down her face.

"I think—something is wrong."

There must have been seriousness to his voice, because she lifted her face from the top of Natsu's head and met his eyes. He could see that she didn't want him to continue, she didn't _want_ to know that something awful was about to grace their home again. "Nothing is wrong, Zeref. Nothing will ever be wrong again."

 _Nothing is wrong. Nothing._ She said it with so much _conviction._ Zeref wanted to agree, but he couldn't, not with every nerve ending coming alive and _burning_. "Something's happening to me."

She shook her head furiously. "No, Zeref."

 _Yes._ The air in the basement got leaden, and not just with the smoke, it was something new. Something that filled him up with every breath until he couldn't breath anymore, until he couldn't see anymore, until he was just ugly sensation, stuffed to bursting. "Mother—" The first tendril of black shadow swirled around his fingers. When it touched Mother, she flinched.

"What is that? What's happening?" Zeref released her and Natsu and stood. The panic he was feeling was _blinding._ Trapped in his body with nowhere to go, Natsu watched everything unfold, knowing what was coming next. He wished he could pull away. He didn't want to see the darkness come. He especially didn't want to experience what it felt like first-hand. He was a slave to Zeref's memory, ensnared. Before the killing curse came, Zeref got entirely cold. His heart stopped. Atticus' warning trilled in his head.

' _Cursed.'_

Blackness ballooned. Zeref screamed, unable to help himself. Mother joined him. An outsider looking in, Natsu watched his own eyes go wide. His mouth remained firmly closed, though, like he wasn't surprised or scared.

A black cloud encompassed every inch of the basement, darker than a starless night. Mother stopped screaming. The cloud cleared. In its wake, Mother lay on the ground, lifeless, one hand still touching Natsu's back. Zeref looked to Natsu, expecting the worst, and saw that he was still alive, shivering.

The next words the resurrected boy spoke were, "What happened to Mother?" Zeref hiccupped in breath after breath, trying to figure that out for himself. Natsu seemed almost unaffected, brushing Mother's light rose hair back from her face. "Is she sleeping?"

 _Sleeping._ Zeref's heart ached. "She's… she's dead, Natsu."

He lifted his eyes. Black, depthless. "Dead?"

"Taken into the Reaper's halls." His voice quivered with every word. _What happened? What was the blackness? Will it come back? Is Natsu in danger?_ Those were only a _few_ of the questions roaming Zeref's mind, choking the real Natsu half to death.

"Is the Reaper going to come for us, too?"

Zeref swallowed. "No, Natsu, no. He won't bother us again."

Of course, he knew in his heart that was a lie.

 _I've had enough,_ Natsu thought viciously and tried to pull away from the unfolding play. Zeref's hold on him was ironclad. Down they went, further into the depths of memory. Days passed in the blink of an eye. Zeref dragged Mother's body out into the backyard when the sky was dark of the moon. He worked as tirelessly as he had when he'd dug Natsu from his place in the earth.

Who knew he'd be such an aficionado when it came to digging graves? There would be more and more of that, too. The bodies would pile up until it no longer made sense to waste time digging holes in the earth; after all, people still needed places to stand. That wasn't until much, much later, though.

The time Zeref didn't spend covering up the evidence of his faux pas was dedicated to learning Natsu's limitations. He'd forgotten most of his memories, which was both a blessing and a curse. All of the things he'd been taught, reading, writing, basic mathematics. Everything was gone. But he remembered Mother. He'd forget that she was dead and ask for her. Patiently, Zeref would explain again what happened. Sometimes he was vague, sometimes he was detailed; it depended upon how much he wanted to make himself suffer. Natsu would always cry. He would also always stop.

It wasn't until a week went by that Zeref felt confident in calling on Valentina to show her that she had been wrong. He left Natsu locked in his room and braved the streets. He caught Valentina when the sun was high, awkwardly carting a huge bag of flour into the bakery.

"Valentina." He was terrified to approach her, yet he found courage from _somewhere_.

She stopped her shuffle and looked at him over the top of the grain bag. Wariness flashed over her face, and a slight hint of fear. Most profound, though, was longing. That look gave Zeref the nerve to continue to her side, to take the bag of flour from her hand, to invite her over that evening. She said yes, of course.

The memory rocketed through several hours of priming and preening. Zeref paced, worried, and when he didn't pace, he checked himself in the hallway mirror, fixing his hair, then Natsu's, too, and their robes, making sure they were straight, the whites white, the blacks black.

Living in Zeref's body, it was impossible for Natsu to escape how nervous the dark mage was. His palms were in a cold sweat and his stomach was all knots.

"Who is Valentina?" small Natsu asked from his seat at the kitchen table. There was a rice cake in front of him, drizzled in maple syrup and mostly picked apart. His face glistened with the sweet. He'd been bottomless since waking, unable to ever keep himself full. Zeref wondered if that was a by-product of being dead and then alive. As far as side-effects went, it wasn't the worst he could think of.

Zeref grabbed a cloth and wet it, then scrubbed Natsu's face. "She's… she's someone I care about." _Love._ Natsu saw it all too clearly, dwelling in Zeref's head. He didn't want to give Zeref that much credit—he wanted to think he _couldn't_ love, but the feeling was impossible to deny.

Young Natsu asked, "Then why are you scared?"

Zeref paused his cleaning to think hard on the answer. Finally, he told the truth. "Because, the last time we met… I wasn't very nice to her." The image of her spilling on the ground, curls going everywhere, eyes wide and frightened, petticoat left on the bed… it filled his head until there was no room left. The shame of knowing he'd made her walk through town like that, for countless men to ogle, then subjecting her to ridicule and punishment from her father for arriving home so indecently, haunted his thoughts, sneaking in when he wasn't prepared.

"But I'm hoping that today, we can make it better." _Everyone can be happy again_. It seemed like such a far-fetched dream.

The door sounded. Zeref went stiff as a board, his eyes gone wide. "That's her." Then he just stared at the entryway.

"Aren't you going to answer the door?" Natsu asked.

"I—" Zeref rubbed his palms on his robe, trying to wipe away the sweat. It only came right back. "No."

"No?" Natsu repeated.

Zeref swallowed what felt like the hugest lump. Natsu had never experienced such anxiety before. It wasn't a great feeling, even if it was second-hand, and he'd be thankful for when it was over. "What if she hates me?"

At the table, Natsu started swinging his legs. "You haven't talked to her. How will you know?"

Everything was so simple from a child's perspective. Zeref took in a fortifying breath. "You're right."

The memory sped. Going to the door, opening it wide. Valentina standing there in her best dress, her hair elaborately pinned. Her lips were plumped, her cheeks rouged, and her lashes darkened with some makeup. She didn't see Natsu at first, only Zeref. Everything zipped by, the words Zeref said, Valentina's response. Apologies all around. She stepped in, the door closed, and then at the table, Natsu munched loudly on his rice cake, drawing her eyes.

Her face went white. The memory slowed up. "Zeref, what have you done?"

"What I needed to." Zeref said it confidently. "With a bit of hard work, the gods have given me a miracle, Valentina. He's alive, and has been for a week."

She breathed, "Is this a trick?"

"See for yourself."

She went to Natsu on stiff legs and touched his face, pushed back his hair, brushed crumbs from his mouth. Her hands quivered. "It shouldn't be possible… Natsu?"

Natsu watched himself blink and focus. "You smell like Mother when she makes pie."

Valentina's smile was a million watery watts. "Your nose is as keen as ever. I'm sorry, Natsu, I didn't bring any to give to you. Next time."

Zeref said, "There are cookies in the cold room, Natsu. Will you get them?"

Natsu chirruped like a regular boy was supposed to and leapt from his chair. With every passing day he became a little more leveled, less like a blank slate and more like the brother Zeref remembered. _Maybe his memories will even return_.

Valentina loosed a lungful of air and faced Zeref. He half expected to see fear and fury on her face, and there was some of the former, a touch of the latter, but mostly it was just wonder and joy. And tears. "This is incredible." She came to him and wrapped her arms around his neck in a bone-crushing hug. This close, Natsu realized that his young self was right, she smelled overwhelmingly of vanilla. His sensations merged more fully with Zeref's as Valentina's body pressed into his. Her lips landed on his cheek.

"I'm so happy for you and your family, Zeref. Was it very difficult?"

She didn't know the lengths he had to go to, nor was he going to tell her. "It wasn't easy, but I'd do it over again." Without hesitation.

Valentina leaned back so he could see her smile, and then kissed him flat on the mouth. "I'm sorry we've been apart."

Zeref felt a wash of shame. "It's my fault. I was just so…"

"You were hurting. But everything is better now." She kissed him again, a press of her lips to his.

"I—I love you." It came out muffled, muttered against her lips. She repeated his words fearlessly. Zeref closed his eyes, trying to hold onto her words, memorizing them. ' _I love you_.'

It felt like such a private moment, Natsu wanted more than anything to sever the memory sequence. He couldn't, though, not until the last played out. He was aware of the change before memory-Zeref was, the coldness that started in the center of his chest and expanded outward. He opened his eyes and saw Valentina's freckles dusting her cheeks, but beyond that was the black that eased out of his skin, looking sinister.

"Zeref?" Valentina came away from him. Her skin was raised in goose bumps. "Zeref, what is that?"

"I—" _No. please. No_. Natsu didn't know if those were Zeref's thoughts or his own. Maybe they were synonymous. The blackness expanded from his body, seeking life just so it could snuff it out. "Run, Valentina!"

"What?" She was slow, confused and scared.

 _Gods._ "Run! Please!" Zeref staggered back and tripped over his own feet, trying to move too quickly. It wouldn't have mattered anyway; she was still paralyzed. The curse stole the breath from her lungs, the beat from her heart, and left behind a shell.

She was buried beside Mother.

* * *

Natsu came out of the (dream? Memory?) gasping and sputtering, cold from head to foot. The sun was well past its zenith.

Zeref's voice cut through the confusion. "For weeks we continued as we were. It wasn't until I realized the extent of the curse that I tried to end my life. I knew I'd be leaving you behind, but I was too afraid of killing you, too, Natsu. Every time I looked at you, I felt my curse try to take your life away. I tried throwing myself off cliffs, drowning, slicing myself open to bleed out. I even took one of Father's revolvers and shot myself. It hurt when I finally woke days later, but _I couldn't die_. I decided to stop after that, because you'd found me and instead of going to the neighbor, you stayed by my side in the basement and ate bugs because you couldn't cook." He laughed depreciatively. "When I woke, you told me they tasted bad.

"It was a hard decision, but I came to understand that if I wanted to you live, you had to change. You had to become stronger than my curse. And so… I crossed yet another line no man was ever meant to. I made you a demon."

"Shut up and get off of me," Natsu said. He attempted to push Zeref back; his muscles were like soggy bread.

Zeref continued. "You had two purposes: survive the terror I wreaked, and end my miserable existence. It was going to be perfect. But it seems Ankhseram had another laugh at my expense. You laughed and played, _lived,_ Natsu, your power unrealized, while I was forced to continue on, living with the knowledge that you were not only _dormant,_ your demonic half buried beneath this—" He looked at Natsu with utter disgust. "Façade, but your life is _tied to mine._ If I die, you die." He laughed humorlessly and lifted the book. A knife appeared in his hand, pulled from the folds of his robes. He dug it into the top left corner of the book's leather cover. On contact, Natsu's chest exploded in pain; blood poured out of a wide gash. He couldn't gather breath to grunt or swear, he could only hold the place and wonder, _What the hell?_

"See?" Zeref asked. "Isn't that _ironic?_ Everything I've done, all this suffering… it's been utterly meaningless. At the end of the day, either I continue on in this empty existence, or we both die together." His face got hard. "Lucky for us, I've come to terms with what needs to be done. I'm ready."

Natsu clenched his jaw to stop his teeth from chattering and tried pushing Zeref off with more force. Despite the pain, his body responded this time, gaining some well-needed space between them. He was on his feet in a second, swiping at Zeref again. The dark mage took the hit to the jaw like he took everything: unflinchingly. It only made Natsu furious. He growled like an animal. "What right do you have, huh? Where do you get off putting shit like that in my head? _Lying?_ " He grabbed Zeref's throat between his fingers and squeezed hard. Zeref did nothing to free himself.

Natsu asked, "If you wanted to die, you didn't have to make up some elaborate tale, I would have gladly done the honours without having to jump through so many hoops."

Zeref closed his eyes, waiting, the expression on his face not full of peace exactly, but the echo the word left behind: something he wanted but had been denied for so long, he'd forgotten what it was exactly. He wanted the nothingness death could bring. Natsu thought he should be happy to oblige, but when it came time to summon all of the power he thought he'd need to destroy the darkest mage alive, he hesitated. Not for long, but for an _instant,_ long enough to wonder if it was true, if Zeref really did sacrifice _everything_ to save the life of his little brother. Then the instant was up and he told himself, _it wouldn't matter anyway. One noble cause doesn't make up for all of the pain he's brought to so many._

Using every ounce of magic he could, he tried to burn Zeref from the world.

* * *

Muzzy was a good word to describe how Gray felt when the sound of incessantly chirping birds called him from slumber. Keeping his eyes closed, pale golden sunlight pulsing against his lids, he marveled at how shitty he felt, fuzzy and disassociated and still slightly ill. It was like having the worst hangover in the world, only with half as much fun beforehand.

All over again, he experienced Juvia tearing her arm from his grasp and whirling out of the room, too numb to stop her. And then finding her sitting at the guards' table while some other guy brought her a drink. Juvia, who didn't ever fucking drink. And then rushing into the alley to throw up everything he could because his body was just hating him. _All these things to feel sorry for yourself for_.

And today hadn't even really started yet.

A familiar voice asked, "You awake?"

"No," Gray replied and felt blindly for a pillow. He found a blanket instead and tugged it up, intent on burying his head.

His roommate cruelly grabbed it away. Gray dared to crack open an eye so he could glare at Loke. It took him a moment to find the spirit, he wasn't standing exactly at the side of the bed, but sort of down at the foot, where he could grab and take away the blankets without fear of being punched. "What the fuck?"

"It's almost two," Loke said.

 _So late._

"I didn't—" _fall asleep until…?_ He couldn't remember. After the alleyway, last night was a blur of sweats, splitting migraines and dry heaving while Loke paced, looking agitated as he muttered about not being a nurse.

"I'm stepping out for a bit, Gray."

"Heading back to the celestial realm?" Gray wasn't sure if that made him happy or not; the company was equal parts annoying and nice. He didn't want to be alone feeling like this, cold all over, uncomfortable in his own skin. A look down his body revealed that his father's mark was a deep black stain that migrated from his forearm to his shoulder. His neck felt cold, too; if he had a mirror, he'd bet he'd see the evidence of its spread there as well.

"Actually," Loke said, "I'm walking my ass over to the Thorn and Thistle, and I'm asking whoever's working to tell me what room Juvia is in, and then I'm going to beg her to come back here so she can keep an eye on you so I can go back to keeping an eye on Lucy."

Gray came a little more awake. "Leave Juvia alone."

"No. While she's here, I suggest you have a nice long chat." Loke ran his fingers through his hair, trying to fix the askew locks. It helped not at all. He huffed a sigh and turned, heading for the door.

Gray swallowed; his mouth was so dry, tasting like shit. "Loke, wait."

The door opened and snapped closed, swallowing the spirit. Cussing, Gray hauled himself out of bed. His first order of business was to promptly fall to the ground, legs weak. He was up again. There were a pair of pants on the floor that he vaguely remembered shucking off. He grabbed them and clumsily stepped into the legs. They were still undone when he yanked his boots on next. Straightening, he did them up on the way, following as fast as he could, out of his room and through the stagnant, smoke-filled hall. His lungs protested the smell as did his stomach.

He disregarded both.

Catching up to Loke was difficult when it should have been easy. For every step he took, the lion spirit had two. The stairwell door slammed in his face. Growling, Gray ripped it back.

"Loke!" He couldn't even see him now, just hear the slap of his boots on the shitty plywood stairs. "Loke! Get back here!" His voice echoed in the stairway. The outer door closed. Gray moved faster than what he was comfortable with, taking the steps two at a time. Gathering motivation was easier when he imagined the look on Juvia's face when Loke knocked on her door. When he imagined trying to think of something to say.

He came out into the late morning. The sun blazed from an unforgiving blue sky. Squinting didn't help his head. Across the street, Loke disappeared into the Thorn and Thistle. How did he get across the road so goddamn fast?

"Loke!" Not that he heard. Gray barely checked for carts as he hobbled after and almost got squashed for his carelessness. A farmer leaned out of the front seat and swore fluently as he drove by. Gray flipped him off, not quite able to help himself. The cart kept going. So did Gray.

He'd never felt so damned slow.

On the opposite side now, Gray reached for the Thorn and Thistle's dingy door just as it was pushed out. Unable to stop, he slammed into Riley Ackles. Ackles grabbed his arm and steadied him.

"Easy."

Gray got his footing well enough to stand on his own. "Thanks." He meant to take in the guard in passing, however his eyes got stuck on Ackles' messy hair and his askew uniform, the top few buttons of his dark petticoat open. His pants were wrinkled and he looked... tired. Hungover. With the blink of an eye, Gray put Ackles in the Thorn and Thistle's bar last night, carrying a drink to Juvia. He felt a stone drop in his stomach.

 _You don't know anything happened. He could have been staying there with anyone._

Gray couldn't shake the feeling in his chest.

Ackles asked, "What's up with that black mark? Are you alright?"

Gray couldn't answer. Perhaps pushing past Riley Ackles without another word was rude. It was better than punching him, though.

"Have a good one," the guard muttered facetiously at Gray's back.

Walking into the bar's dank interior and the smell of old liquor stopped up any reply Gray was stewing on. He didn't bother asking a woman cleaning which room Juvia stayed in; the Thistle didn't have many anyway.

No one tried to stop him from climbing the stairs. The railing had been rubbed smooth by so many hands, winners and losers alike. Gray knew which he felt like as his feet took him closer to his answer.

He didn't need to look for her room at the top of the stairs; the door was open. Juvia was hanging out, wrapped in a short black robe, staring at a slice of air that had been glowing brightly seconds ago. Her hair was even messier than Ackles' had been. The weight in Gray's stomach got heavier. It had only been an evening, but it felt like he hadn't seen her in _days_ , like she was someone completely new and totally untouchable now.

"Juvia." Even saying her name felt like… well, like he was stealing it. Like he was taking what he had no right to take.

She stiffened like she'd been electrocuted and slowly looked his way. He saw everything he thought he needed to in that shamefaced expression. He approached, trying to think of something awful to say. "You let that asshole stay here last night?" It wasn't the best he had, but it was a start. Juvia blinked, still startled by his arrival. Or maybe it was his appearance. She catalogued the spread of his devil slayer's mark rather efficiently; all she could see, anyway. Gray felt it all over his back, too. So cold.

Instead of addressing his outburst, Juvia said, "Loke said you were sick, Gray."

Gray didn't _care_ about that. The migraine that had been hanging around for days was suffocated beneath a layer of what felt very much like betrayal. "Answer me."

She wrapped her arms around her middle, still trying to pretend that everything was alright. "If... if you want, I'll take you to see Porlyusica."

"I don't want to see Porlyusica," Gray said sharply. "I want you to fucking answer me. _Did you let him stay here?_ "

She shook off her shock and drew herself up. "If you're sick, I'll help you, but who I did or didn't have here last night is none of your business."

He swiped a hand over his face, wiping away cold sweat. "Juvia— _fuck_ , how could you do that to me?" He had no idea what the hell he was saying.

Juvia did, though. "I didn't do _anything,_ Gray. Not to you."

His palms hurt, nails digging in hard enough that they scraped up bits of skin. "You fucked him—"

" _Shut up_. What right do you have to come up here slinging accusations and yelling at me for doing what I want after everything?"

Gray's ears roared. "What right? You told me you loved me, Juvia, but here you are—"

She wouldn't let him get a full sentence in. "I meant it at the time, unlike you, you liar and—and—" She was too upset to think of another insult. Her neck was flushed, and her chest. Gray had never seen her so furious. Her hands gripped the doorframe hard enough that her knuckles were white. Against the dingy, dark wood, he could see the green nail polish she wore was chipped now. Gray imagined all the ways it became so. And then he imagined not imagining that, because that just felt like torture, a hot poker in his guts.

"Juvia—" He tried for all the things he couldn't say last night, though a very vocal voice in his brain said not to bother, that it didn't matter, that she'd be both happier and better off with someone that didn't feel so conflicted about her. "That stuff with Lucy _didn't matter._ It meant nothing—"

"It meant _something_." Her voice had come down from its high-pitched screech and developed a dangerous note.

"Yeah. It meant that I was all fucked up, okay? That's _all_. That shit went down with my dad and—"

Nope, there was no full sentence to be had. Juvia burst into tears. "I couldn't _help it_ , Gray! I had to kill him. There was no other choice."

He was momentarily quelled into silence by her outburst, the raw truth of it. He _knew_ it, had even thought he'd come to terms with it, but fuck, in that moment, Silver's death felt raw all over again.

She sniffed, ready before he was to drive the nail home. "If you couldn't forgive me, you never should have asked me to leave that night. You should have just stayed in Lucy's bed instead of pretending you loved me." As if that were all of the things she could gather the courage to say, she pulled back from the doorway and slammed the door so hard that the dusty window at the end of the hall quivered in its pane.

Gray stared at the barrier for a few heartbeats, letting her words sink in, waiting for his heart to settle. It never did. Woodenly, he approached. He thought it was to knock and call her name and demand to see her again. In actuality, it was to just stare at the door and wonder vaguely if she was right, if he did lie through his teeth because he felt guilty for the way he felt toward her after Silver died. If he'd been fooling her and himself.

It felt like a lie, but who the hell was he to say? Clear thinking was a million miles away.

* * *

Juvia leaned against the door for a long time, listening to Gray on the other side of the barrier, wondering if he'd gather the courage and the words to bug her again. She wished he would, she wished he wouldn't. Eventually, she heard his aggravated sigh, and then his boots scuffing down the hallway. He sounded well enough to her, not as sick as Loke said. _Then why was his mark like that?_ His chest mostly black, his arm and neck, the space beneath his chin and reaching up his cheek toward his eye, too. She almost tore open the door and called him back. The urge passed. Fortified again, Juvia went back to what she was doing: packing her bags properly and getting the hell out of town.

Another knock on the door caused her to physically jump. _It's Gray. It's Riley. It's Loke again._ Or even worse. She imagined it was Lucy, come to pass around her apologies and tears in that _way_ she had. Well, Juvia didn't _want_ to forgive Lucy, though she knew the blonde wasn't _really_ the object of her ire. What she did was wrong, sure, they were supposed to be friends, but ultimately the biggest betrayal lay in Gray's hands, not hers.

Impatient and confused, Juvia stared at the door until it was knocked upon once more. Coming unstuck, she crossed the room but hesitated again, hand outstretched for the doorknob. She didn't feel brave enough to see who waited on the other side. Her heart was going a million miles a minute. _Just do it._

It wasn't Loke or Gray or Riley that waited behind the barrier, but the woman that visited with Eileen, the one with long coral hair. Akio. She wore a smile that was both sharper than blades and beautiful.

"Juvia, you weren't thinking on leaving, were you?"


	19. Chapter 19

Gajeel navigated the cracked city streets with ease, yet he kept his pace slow for Levy and her much shorter legs. She scurried, leaping over stray boulders, deking around piles of garbage and the occasional homeless person. Her cheeks were red; there was sweat on her brow and between her breasts. It was hot, and her magic council's' coat, though shredded, wasn't helping matters much. She didn't remove it, perhaps remembering the last thing it had saved her from.

"Gajeel, what about Porlyusica?"

"We'll go for her after we check this out, Levy. We only have a small window here while the extraction's taking place," Gajeel replied. He sent a silent apology Wendy's way.

"Well, what if this isn't something we can—take care of on our own?" Levy huffed.

Gajeel slowed his steps a touch more, allowing the girl to properly catch up. "We've got this."

"We don't know what it is—or _who_ , for that matter. It could be _anything. Anyone."_

"If you're scared—"

Levy waited for him to tell her to back off so she could yell at him for being both incautious and stupid. He left his sentence as it was, not so new to that trap.

"Come on, we're almost there." Gajeel set off again, fingering his Magic Council ring as he went, spinning it around and around, the only outlet he'd allow for his nervous energy.

Levy took in a deep breath and lengthened her steps. The closer they got to the drain site, the pricklier the air became. It wasn't something someone would notice unless they were looking for it because it wasn't a presence of magic, but rather the complete absence of. Or in this case, a siphoning off.

The building-choked street blocked Gajeel's view, but he knew exactly where they were: where the old library used to be, before it was utterly ruined in the Tartarus attack. "This is the place." Definitely. Wanting a chance to observe their quarry in the hopes of gaining some sort of advantage, he reached for the fire escape ladder stapled to the municipal building and started to climb hand over hand. He heard Levy clambering below, doing her best to keep up.

The rooftop was gravel. So high, the wind grabbed his coat and tugged. His hair tried to whip out of its low horsetail. For all the distraction, he didn't miss the woman standing below in the epicenter of a very large crater, much like the one they found on the outskirts of Raven's Canyon. Her long hair was as bright as blood, her cloak as black as a raven's wing.

Thinking he and Levy were okay up there, out of sight, he hunkered down, watching the woman use a long staff to extract from the earth all the residual magic she could, forcing it into a small red crystal that looked very much like a lacrima.

"Who is that?" Levy whispered.

As soon as the first word left her mouth, the woman down below lifted her gaze and found them. Her lips twitched into the meanest smile Gajeel had ever seen, and he'd seen plenty. She finished her extraction, the stone glowing brightly, then lifted her staff and snapped it against the ground with authority. The building beneath Gajeel's feet crumbled like it was made of talc. He didn't even have a chance to draw breath.

* * *

Natsu gritted his teeth and poured everything he had into his attack. Zeref still remained unmoving, head tipped back, eyes closed like he was praying. _'The gods have given me a miracle_.' The memory made Natsu falter. _No, no, keep going_.

The rubble beneath his feet caught flame. The glass amongst the debris melted as he called on the new, suffocating power he'd discovered during his year of training. It was the dregs of what Igneel left behind, but it had to be enough to kill Zeref, and every memory the dark mage had given to him. ' _I tried throwing myself off cliffs, drowning, slicing myself open to bleed out. I even took one of Father's revolvers and shot myself_.'

 _Stop thinking about it. He's a liar._

Fire was everywhere, so hungry that there wasn't a scrap of oxygen to be found. Once Natsu breathed out, that was it.

"It's not enough." The sounds of the flames were deafeningly loud, yet the noise didn't cover up Zeref's voice. "Nothing you do to kill me will be enough, Natsu; you need END for that."

"Shut up!" Natsu growled. Black spots appeared at the edges of his vision. He wished he had have held his breath for longer. _Come on, come on_. He reached for more power.

Calmly, Zeref said, "I won't. If you won't remember on your own... you leave me no choice but to force you." Black tendrils leaked from Zeref's hand and entwined Natsu's wrist. Natsu's palm sang; his whole arm turned cold. The ruined guild dropped away as he was thrust into a memory.

' _Cut the thread of dreaming_.' He saw the fake Lucy in his mind again, standing on the edge of the pier, the wind grabbing her hair and whipping it around her neck like the most delicate golden fingers. _'Cut the thread_.' She was falling. Falling. Down, down, down, into the ocean to drown, to get taken away and lost.

"Or..." Zeref whispered. "Of that won't work..."

Natsu saw the girl on the docks, eyes wide, clothes torn open, breasts out, chest wet with blood, panties torn to shreds.

 _No. No._

The memory took up a life of its own, showing him things he didn't see before, from a perspective that was unfamiliar: above looking down. Sound filled Natsu's ears. Crickets, waves. Smells filled his nose. Briny water, waste. A woman with pink hair and a sharp smile stepped out from the shadow of a crate and grabbed the blonde. There was a struggle, but really, to call it that would be a disservice. The blonde didn't have much of a chance. Her shirt ripped to shreds with little effort. Next was her skirt. And her legs, by hands that very quickly turned into sharp knives. When she screamed, Natsu screamed with her, unable to look, unable to look away. She was Lucy in every way, right down to her smell. Rationality fell away; it didn't _matter_ that he knew Lucy was back at the motel. It didn't _matter_ that he knew this memory, or vision, or _whatever the hell it was_ , was Zeref's doing. He watched and screamed, seeing things he never, ever wanted to see, until he very acutely felt the crack of something fragile in his chest, something drawn tautly and pushed that extra little bit. The pain that came next was startling, the cold that rocketed through his body, expanding from his hand and up his arm, blinding. Paralyzing. Freezing.

The fire surrounding Natsu's body roared as if doused with oil. All nearby grass shriveled and died, the leaves on the trees turned to ash, the muddy puddles filling dingy potholes evaporated, leaving behind only charred stone.

As quickly as the fire flared, it sizzled out, stolen from Natsu's body by something he didn't understand. His knees buckled; the ground rushed up to meet him. Gravity tried to take him further. Natsu struggled to stay on his knees, hiccupping breath after breath, lungs resisting every inch of the way. _Gods. Gods_. He couldn't breathe.

The air cleared, smoke and ash taken by the wind. In the space where the fire had been, Zeref stood, looking singed but really no worse for wear. The only true sign that he'd been on the receiving end of an attack was the blooming bruise on his cheek and the soot smear on his forehead. His mouth curled up. "There he is." His look turned reverent. "It was just a glimpse, but I have a feeling that you're very, very close to breaking." He crouched so he was looking levelly in Natsu's eyes. "END will be with us soon, brother, and it'll all be over. Thank you. Thank you for your sacrifice."

Natsu didn't get to ask what Zeref meant by that, for blackness grabbed him firmly and dragged him under.

* * *

Lucy crossed her legs up on the bed and chewed on a lock of hair. It felt wrong to sit there while Natsu was out doing whatever it was that he was doing ( _I just need to clear my head_ ) but here she was, waiting for the floating southern cross, Crux, to finally get to the point.

"As I said," he drawled, "There are many different kinds of magic that use teeth. I tried to sort them into relevant categories to narrow it down some."

Loke came away from his perch against the wall. "I found those teeth at sites where girls were brutally murdered." There were deep bruises beneath his eyes and his hair was messier than usual. He had the sleeves of his sweater rolled up and kept fussing with the hem, an agitated tick if Lucy had ever seen one. When he'd appeared an hour ago, she asked how long it had been since he'd returned to the celestial realm. He shrugged her off and avoided answering. She told him to go home. He flat out refused.

Crux said, "Some teeth are used to summon the beasts they came from, bringing them to life. Good mages can control them and command their loyalty. Usually this spell is used in combat."

Loke shook his head. "Not so relevant."

The cross wasn't deterred. "They can also be used to raise the dead in much the same way. A false necromancy, if you will. The spell doesn't last as long, but it is effective."

Loke picked at his sleeve more, the only show that he was uncomfortable with this conversation. He glanced at Lucy. "Those girls were dead beforehand. But... Can they be used to control people? Like, living?"

"There are no records of that," Crux said. "But many things are possible."

Lucy fleshed out Loke's line of thought. "I—I didn't see if Lance had any teeth missing." Not that she spent much time looking into his mouth. "Maybe I can ask Riley..."

Loke nodded. "What else?"

"They can be used in earth magic, creating golems, transformation magic... duplication."

"Transformation?" Loke prodded.

Crux replied, "It's all very dark stuff, and not exactly related. I only mentioned it because teeth have been used before in such ways, but it's not restricted…"

"Even if it's only a little bit related, it could be pertinent." Lucy made and effort to be more gentle than Loke.

The cross puffed out his cheeks. "Body parts— _any_ , not just teeth—can be taken from one person, spelled and gifted to another. When the person accepts the gift, they take on the attributes of the one the... part came from."

Natsu haunted her. _Every time I look at them, I see you_. It was ridiculous, but Lucy ran her tongue over her teeth, making sure they were all still in place.

The cross looked especially uncomfortable. "There are easier and more civilized ways to complete a transformation, but none that would last as long. Or be as true. These can last days, and even into death."

Loke was eyeing Lucy, the cogs in his head turning. "Those girls all has a very similar look, didn't they, Happy?"

Happy sat up straighter on the couch. "I guess... they were all blonde with freckles. Busty, long hair..."

Loke was still studying his master. "Kinda like Lucy."

"Yeah," Happy said slowly. "Maybe."

Lucy crossed her arms over her chest, not liking where Loke was heading.

"And this all started when she got into town."

"So what?" Lucy asked. "It could be a coincidence."

"It could be," Loke said. "But I've never really believed in coincidences."

"I don't really either," Lucy conceded after a moment. "I just don't know why... I don't understand. What's the point? Why kill all those girls?"

Loke went back to his original assessment. "Maybe someone is trying to scare you off."

"From _what_ , though?"

"Magnolia. Maybe they don't want Fairy Tail reunited." He was reaching, everyone recognized it.

A loud, hair-raising rumble rocked the foundation of Briar's Lock so badly that the brush in the bathroom fell to the floor in a clatter, as did the daisy painting over the bed. The glass cracked. Thoroughly distracted, Lucy froze, hair clamped between her teeth, and stared at the violent ball of fire that filled the sky. Even though it was the late afternoon, the sun still shining bright, the orange glow of flame dominated the landscape, casting everything in a golden light.

"What the hell was that?" Loke asked.

Happy stood, stretching to look out of the window. He came to the same conclusion Lucy did. "Natsu." It had to be.

 _He's in trouble._ What if he wasn't? What if he was just mad? _Maybe stay here and give him more space._ Yet, Lucy was on her feet and clambering out of the door despite the uncertainty she felt, unable to give into that cowardice just because she wasn't sure if Natsu wanted to see her.

"Lucy!" Loke quickly fell behind. He hurried, Happy over his shoulder.

* * *

There was chatter to the streets, people talking— _speculating_. Lucy ignored most of what they said, except for the bits where they talked about fear of a monster. Magnolia had had enough of monsters. Everyone had.

Lucy was able to keep her eyes on the roaring fire for a kilometer, then it extinguished. That was fine, the dull smoke that drifted into the air wouldn't be smothered so easily, its black plume like a beacon for anyone looking.

"Lucy,' Loke panted behind her. "Just hang on a second. Wait for us.""

He really needed to return to the celestial realm if he was having trouble keeping up. Lucy shortened her steps just as she became aware of a suffocating presence. Her heart lodged in her throat, dancing in an uneven rhythm. _What is it?_

 _Who?_ She could see no one. The unease she felt was difficult to dismiss. "Hurry up, Loke."

He'd barely made it to her side when she took off again, knowing exactly where she was going as soon as her feet touched the bridge over the canal. Fairy Tail. Of course Natsu would go to Fairy Tail. It was the one place he'd find solace. Her steps became surer. Until there was no ground for them to be sure _upon,_ the next step she took into thin air. Screaming helped nothing, yet she did it anyway. Her mouth was still open when she crashed into the water below, amongst all of the bridge debris. The macrophyte-filled liquid rushed up her nose and into her mouth, choking her. The breath burst from her lungs in a rough cough. With no more air to suck in, Lucy felt the first threads of panic.

It was dark down there at the bottom of the canal, closed off from the water's surface. Lucy had several unsavory thoughts soar through her mind as she sank, everything from _are there monsters in the water?_ to _I'm going to drown_.

 _Damnit. Swim. Get out of the water._

She found the bottom in record time and kicked off, rising to the surface despite the cement-like mud filling her boots.

Breaking free, she sucked in a ragged breath and coughed hard. Her recovery was cut short, a hand fisting in her shirt, tearing her from the water and throwing her like she weighed nothing at all. The crash into the fractured bridge abutment rocked through every one of her bones, pushing them to the very brink of breaking. She didn't scream now, unable to. Blinking brought a woman into focus, one with long coral hair. Her eyes were dark pits, bottomless and merciless. Her hand transformed before Lucy's eyes, hardening and lengthening to resemble a sharp blade.

She came at Lucy faster than Lucy could follow. There was only time to throw herself wildly to the right. The woman's makeshift sword bit right through the concrete where Lucy's throat used to be. There was no time to celebrate her clumsy success, because the sword was coming for her again.

Bright light filled the air. _Loke's magic_ , Lucy thought. The woman was knocked off balance, splatted to the wall like an overlarge spider, giving Lucy just enough time to get to her feet and call a star dress. A bow mimicking Sagittarius' appeared in her hand. She knocked several arrows and thrust into them enough magic to destroy a city street. She loosed just as fast, barely aiming, entrusting the spell to guide her arrows true. It happened just as it should, until the pointed tips bit into the woman's chest, the arrows sinking in halfway up the shaft. She stumbled back against the wall again, a startled look coming to her face, and then the arrows exploded. The result was immediate and shocking and messy, and not at all what Lucy had intended. Blood hit the abutment, and dotted Lucy's front. She finally found breath to scream, yet she held it in, trapping it way down in her chest, telling herself to be stronger than that, more stubborn than that.

The woman fell to the ground, limp. Then, before Lucy's very eyes, she turned to dust and was taken away by the wind.

"Lucy!" Happy scrambled before her. There was a lot of white showing in his eyes. "Are you okay?"

 _Okay_? She was shaking, rattled right to her core. She kept looking at the place the woman had been. There was nothing there now, except for the red splatter on the wall. A figure blocked out her view. Loke grabbed her arms, anchoring her.

"Look at me."

Lucy lifted her eyes.

"Are you okay?"

"I—I killed her—"

"She was going to do the same, Lucy. You did what you had to. _Are you okay_?"

The breath she took felt hot filling her body. "Yes, but that woman—"

"Demon," Loke corrected.

Lucy swallowed. "I didn't want it to happen. The arrows shouldn't have made contact. They should have exploded before. But I—I panicked, Loke. I didn't mean—"

"You did what you had to. Remember, she was a _demon_ trying to kill you." As if demons were less. _Maybe they are, they're the ones that took Aquarius,_ Lucy thought.

But… "Loke, she was still alive—"

"Don't fall apart, Lucy." Loke said in a very no-nonsense tone. It was the same tone he used when he was through coddling her. That tone meant buck up. Get your act together. There is no time for uncertainty.

Lucy took in a jagged breath and squared her shoulders. "We have to find Natsu." There would be time to think about this later, when she wasn't worried that he was being attacked, too.

Loke nodded his approval, businesslike and certain. Lucy was envious of his composure. She could fall to the ground and cry until she couldn't anymore.

Happy's downy wings appeared. He gathered air beneath them and took to the sky, leading the way. Loke waited for Lucy to go next. Walking hurt, her bones protesting the abuse. It was easy to dismiss it, though, more determined than before to find Natsu.

* * *

Juvia stared numbly at the dingy, dust filled mirror, lost in sensation. Akio's fingers slid through her hair methodically. Sometimes they were sharp, sometimes they were soft, but the stroking was even. Thusly, it was obvious that something was wrong when Akio stopped, fingers tightening in Juvia's hair. Something popped, the sound wet. Immediately following, something dropped over Juvia's shoulder and landed in her lap. She followed its descent to where it came to rest between her thighs. It took some time for her to make sense of what she was seeing. A fingernail, gone purple and black, rotten. Her throat closed tight with revulsion.

"Damnit," Akio muttered.

Juvia attempted to wriggle away from her place between the woman's legs. Akio reaffirmed her hold on Juvia's hair.

"Stay where you are, slayer's slut." It was said gently, but Juvia didn't miss the warning in her voice. Her heart beat faster. Fear. Anger. The two emotions helped to pull some of the cobwebs from her mind. She writhed more even though the woman pulled her hair harder, until her butt was on the floor and not on the couch. The ground was cold and hard and dirty, sand and other things clinging to her palms and her thighs and even her rump because her robe pulled up and mostly open. The woman hissed and reached for her just as Juvia got to her knees and twisted around to see her. The face she vaguely remembered was mostly gone, the skin roughed by scales, her smile punctured by needle-like teeth. True fear punched through the water mage.

"Who—what—"

The apartment door opened, derailing Juvia before she could really get up any steam, and Eileen entered as if she belonged there. "I thought I'd find you here, Akio."

Akio looked away from Juvia, some of the harshness of her features softening. "Miss Eileen. What are you doing back?"

Juvia made to rise on shaking legs.

"Don't bother, Juvia. Relax." Eileen pointed at her. Juvia felt like she was paralyzed. Her legs gave out, spilling her to the ground again. Satisfied, Eileen returned her attention to the other woman. "Akio, it's rude to play with people, and even ruder to play with your food. I'm putting an end to this now."

"Miss Eileen—she's mine. You said I could have her—"

"I didn't, actually," Eileen said. "I believe I said nothing at all."

Akio looked on stubbornly. "You can't kill her, we were having fun—"

 _Kill_? Juvia's heart felt like it was going to explode.

Eileen laughed. "I don't plan on killing sweet Juvia when there are things she can do for us still."

"You said that I could have her. How am I supposed to make Gray Fullbuster suffer if I can't ruin—"

"Shut _up,_ Akio," Eileen said sharply. "If you go against Gray Fullbuster as he is now, he'll kill you, just like he'll kill END and ruin things for his Majesty. Unacceptable. Think above your own selfish wants for a moment and see the big picture."

Juvia struggled to make her mind follow. Everything felt so _segmented,_ like someone was reaching right into her head and scrambling things around. She caught onto one thing, though. These people were interested in Gray. Gray, who she was angry with for his lies and his assumptions and his inability to trust her. Gray, who despite all of that, she loved furiously. "I would never hurt Gray-sama."

Eileen raised her brow. "Hurt?"

Calmness befell Juvia.

"I don't want you to hurt him, Juvia. I would never ask that. I just want you to give him something for me, okay?"

Juvia looked at her warily, calmed but not completely pacified. "What is it?"

"Just a talisman. Something to suppress his power."

Juvia shook her head. "Why—I wouldn't—"

"You will because you've come to realize the same thing I've known for a long, long time. That devil slayer's mark will destroy anyone that bears it; it will rot them from the inside out, starting first with their mind. It will use him until there is nothing left except rage, and then it will take even that, and Gray Fullbuster will be no more. I want to help you help him. Give him this talisman." She held out a small round stone, redder than the reddest apple.

"You lie." Juvia meant to make the proclamation with _conviction_ , yet it only came out a weak whisper.

"Do I?" Eileen asked. "Is that a risk you're willing to take when someone offers to help you out of the goodness of their heart?"

"Why…?"

"Maybe I just like you, Juvia," Eileen said.

"I saw him today." Akio was suddenly feeling amicable. "His skin was stained with his father's magic. It's already begun to use him up. I know it."

Juvia wished she could deny it, but she knew what she saw. Her mouth moved, asking the question her mind told her to ignore. "It will really help?"

"This is the _only_ thing that will help. I promise." Eileen held out the stone for Juvia. The water mage sat up on her knees and reached without much meaning to do _that_ either. The stone fit into her palm. "Good girl," Eileen praised. "You can tell him that it's a cure you stumbled upon. With the help of a _very_ skilled mage, of course. He'll thank you." She smiled, obviously pleased with herself. "Make sure he keeps it on him at all times, alright, Juvia?"

Juvia licked her lips, her stomach doing weird things. Flopping with nervousness at the prospect of seeing Gray again. Flopping because the magic she held in her hand was overbearingly pungent. As soon as she thought that, the feeling slipped away and she could breathe.

"Good. Good girl, Juvia." Eileen petted her head much like she was a dog. Looking to the ground, her eyes fell on Akio's discarded nail. "What happened?"

Akio rubbed the place where her nail used to be. "Another one of my doppelgangers were killed it would seem."

"I told you to handle the celestial mage _personally_ ," Eileen hissed. "Don't send one of your clones to do the work."

Akio whispered lowly, "Master END will kill me."

"END?" Juvia asked.

"Never mind, Juvia." Eileen said to Akio, "If he catches you he will definitely, but that doesn't mean you don't have to do the work, Akio. We're all taking risks."

The woman nodded, resigned. "Yes, Miss Eileen."

Eileen started to turn away. "Wait," Akio called her back.

She turned, thin brow raised. "Yes?"

Akio looked to Juvia. "M—may I still keep her, if I promise not to hurt her badly?"

"You're all parasites," Eileen said. "Each one of you his Majesty created more twisted than the last."

Akio just stared, not defending herself.

Eileen sighed and said, "I don't want anything to do with your happenings, as long as that stone comes to be in the devil slayer's possession."

As soon as the door closed behind her, Akio turned to Juvia. "Shall we dress you then, Juvia, so that we may deliver our prize and get back to the fun things at hand?"

* * *

Crammed into a dress that was tighter and whiter and _smaller_ than anything she'd worn out in public before, Juvia came out of the Thorn and Thistle's small residence area and down the stairs. She hesitated on the final step, looking at the man standing beside the bar where he'd been for the majority of last night, when he wasn't at her table.

Riley Ackles lifted his gaze from a tall stack of reports and fixed his gaze on her. His eyes lingered everywhere, but mostly on her spilling breasts. "Hello, Juvia."

Looking at him, Juvia's lips burned, as did her body. It was easy to remember the moment he'd leaned in and kissed her, the moment she'd led him upstairs, gotten undressed, frantic and dumb.

"I guess you decided not to leave today after all."

Juvia remembered Akio coming into her room earlier that afternoon and methodically unpacking everything she'd packed. "I… no." Apparently.

"That's good to hear. I was thinking that I'd have to be sorry that I didn't get to see you afterward."

Juvia hadn't decided if she was or not. Sitting there last night, looking across the bar at Gray as he realized that she was at someone else's table, gave her a very mean sense of gratification. And a whole lot of shame as soon as she placed it. It was nice to be wanted, though, wasn't it? _Even if it's a cheap thrill? Meaningless?_ It hurt her heart. _If Gray can do it…_

It was worse when he did it, though. He _knew_ the person he was doing it with. Or at least, that's what she told herself. Whether or not she believed the lie was a different story.

Riley searched her eyes. "Are you uncomfortable with last night?"

So very much. Juvia tightened her hold on the gemstone she clutched. "It's fine."

"Are you sure? It was kind of forward, especially after you told me about…"

Juvia expected him to be a _little_ shamefaced. He didn't blush at all. She did enough for the both of them. "It was… welcomed at the time."

"That's good to know." Riley rubbed his face tiredly.

The jewel Juvia held in her hand burned, telling her to get moving before she couldn't. It was rude to just duck out, but she was very, very close.

"I'm off tonight, too," Riley said. "Are you going to be around here again?"

Juvia hesitated, unsure of what to say. "I… don't know. Maybe."

Riley grinned toothily. "I'll get us a table."

Juvia smiled in a way that was dismissive. "I'll keep my eye out, if I decide to go." She made a break for it, needing to get to Gray before the stone burned a hole right through her palm.


	20. Chapter 20

Ruination had never looked so complete. Grass charred so deep the soil beneath had turned solid, its moisture stolen away. Debris from the destroyed guild hall burned to particles less than ash. A wide radius of black, black, black burned white. And in amongst all of the destruction was a limp body, his splash of pink hair the only colour in a dichromatic world.

Natsu was paler than talc and limper than a ragdoll, staring up at the sky with eyes of onyx. First, Lucy thought he was dead. Her mind rejected the very notion, of course, Natsu was infallible and untouchable. _Then why is he so…_

 _Lifeless?_

Loke was talking at her back, chanting words that went unheard. Something like, _'Don't go onto the rubble. You'll fall through.'_ Or, ' _I'll get him, Lucy, stay where you are.'_ Or maybe a combination of the two. He was always trying to keep her safe. From physical dangers and emotional. He'd always been protective, but it had gotten worse in the last year. Lucy wasn't _thinking_ as she approached Natsu _,_ so she couldn't appreciate Loke's efforts.

The first step onto the debris was so stable, she was inflated with a sense of fearlessness, a singular thought that started and ended with _get to Natsu._ Her earlier fear and shock _(I killed someone)_ took a giant step aside to make way for this new stress. _What if he's dead_? She didn't think about what could have _done_ this to him. She didn't think about the dangers still potentially in the area. She let her feet lead her recklessly over the detritus, much to Loke's chagrin, she was sure.

Bowing and quivering with every step toward the center, like a shattered piece of glass just barely strung together by pressure alone, the ground, already tenuous to begin with, groaned in protest with Lucy's added weight. She tiptoed, using grace and a fluidity she didn't think she possessed to keep her weight well-distributed until she got to Natsu. And then it was like all of the ability fled her system and she collapsed to his side, legs like wet noodles. The debris protested again. Lucy didn't hear it.

This close, she could see that he wasn't actually trapped in a static state, his chest rose and fell in quick, shallow breaths so small, they'd been invisible from a distance, his dark eyes shifted back and forth like he was studying something very closely. Relief made her voice small. "Natsu?" She touched his face. _Please, please, please,_ she prayed to anyone willing to listen. As if in response, as soon as she made contact, his eyes refocused, so he was not just staring up at the sky, seeing things that only he could see, but around at his surroundings, taking things in.

He blinked. Once, twice, and took in a huge breath. It sounded painful. With its release, he gasped out her name. It was the greatest thing Lucy had ever heard. It was also the harshest, like he'd been parched for days. Her stomach twisted with fear. _Don't. Don't panic. He's talking. He's breathing. He's alright._ She touched his face again, brushing his hair back from his forehead. He grabbed her wrist and held it tight, fingers biting in to her bones to prevent her from continuing. Lucy winced, but she was too happy to see him moving to complain. He let her go shortly after, anyway, face slacking with pain. Glancing down revealed why: his palm had turned black. Not just stained, but… Lucy grabbed his hand and turned it skywards so she could examine it. The center was rough, not at all like human skin. The only thing she could liken it to was a snake's, abrasive one way, smooth the other when she ran her fingers over it.

Natsu pulled from her grasp, the look on his face afraid. The next breath he took in was less hindered. The one after that, too. "Lucy." Her name cracked coming out of his paper-dry lips.

"What happened to you, Natsu?" She shifted her weight at the same time Natsu gathered the energy to lift himself up on his elbow. The rubble beneath them whined.

"I…" The dragon slayer blinked again and again. The setting sun was bright. "Zeref."

"Zeref?" Lucy repeated.

"He was here," Natsu affirmed, more sure with every passing second, the cobwebs leaving his mind.

"I just checked the perimeter. I didn't see anything."

Lucy forgot about Happy until his voice punctuated her single-mindedness. Lifting her gaze, she found him keeping himself levitated just feet away. His face was pinched with worry. He too had noticed Natsu's blackened skin and hadn't been able to look away from it.

"He's gone," Natsu said after a moment's thought.

"How do you know?" Lucy asked.

 _Because I can feel him._ "I just do," Natsu said sharply, rattled by the revelation. Lucy looked like she'd been slapped, suddenly on the brink of tears. Natsu took in a deep, steadying breath. "Sorry, Lucy."

She swallowed the lump in her throat and rolled over the emotion, "Are you okay?"

"Fine."

Lucy looked at him from beneath her lashes and Natsu knew for a fact she didn't believe a word he said. She didn't know how to ask him, though, not with this great divide still stretching between them.

Happy asked, "What did he want?"

 _His brother back. His demon._ "I don't know." Natsu imagined keeping his secret all to himself. _There is no secret. It was a lie._ Except… he was starting to doubt that, the memories too real, the pain in his chest where Zeref had stabbed through his book _too_ _real_. He checked. The wound was gone, now only a scar to add to the many others. Doubt was like a cavity. As soon as it started to rot the tooth, there wasn't much help for it. He ran his fingers over the center of his palm, feeling where the thorn went in all those days ago. There was no longer a marble-sized node, but the skin had changed, become sharp in its own way, rough and cold. He barely dared to look at it. His stomach only turned itself inside out when he saw how his skin had blackened. He cleared his throat and got back on topic. "The same thing he always wants, I guess. To fuck things up for us. I gave him everything I had." _And it wasn't enough_.

Lucy didn't need for him to say the last, she knew him well enough to recognize his tortured expression. "Next time, Natsu."

Natsu saw through her ploy. Normally he'd appreciate the effort, but he was too messed up to do much more than say, "He said Wendy was attacked on her way back to Fairy Tail."

"Wendy was with Erza," Lucy said as soon as the shock faded. "If I know Erza, they're probably alright."

Natsu wasn't so sure. He dropped Lucy's gaze to look out over Magnolia. Fairy Tail was at a higher elevation than most of the town. He could see the parts built anew, and those still suffering.

Happy said, "We should find Gray. Let him know what's happening."

Natsu didn't agree nor disagree, not so eager to think about Gray when his head was full of his own shit. One problem at a time.

Lucy stood, the rubble sighing discontentedly under her feet. "Alright."

Natsu finally saw her wet clothes and the blood dotting her front. His heart skipped several beats. "What's that?"

Lucy touched the splatter and became suddenly disassociated.

Happy filled the silence for her. "We were attacked."

Natsu met his best friend's eyes. "Attacked? By what?" _Cut the thread of dreaming._

"A demon," Happy replied when Lucy still just stared at her feet, reliving the moment her spell hit.

"A demon?" _One of Zeref's. Come to cut the thread_. The pieces lined up for him. _Remember who you are. What you are. Zeref's brother. Zeref's demon. If you won't do it on your own_... Zeref was going to take everything that mattered until he did.

"It's dead now," Happy said. "Lucy… took care of it."

 _Lucy?_ Natsu couldn't help but stare. No one seemed to want to elaborate, though, and he was really too exhausted to pursue the avenue _just then_.

"Come on, Lucy." Loke's voice seemed to jar her out of her reverie. "Let's head back so you can get cleaned up and changed, alright?"

Lucy straightened. The fading sunlight clung to her tangled wet hair. Determined to act like everything was fine, she asked Natsu, "Are you okay to stand?"

 _Am I_? He felt totally wrung out.

"I can carry you back," Happy offered.

Natsu was so tired, he didn't even fight.

* * *

Gray was lying on his mussed-up bed and staring up at his ceiling when a knock came on his door. He deliberated, and then decided that avoiding everyone was just going to raise more questions. _You could leave._ Yeah, he could. He didn't want to come back to Magnolia anyway, it was Juvia. He tucked that away for further thought. In the meantime, "Yeah."

When the door came open, the object of his ire walked through.

Juvia hesitated there, just barely in the doorway. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Hi, Gray."

Aside from the difficulty she had in meeting his eye, her only show of discomfort was her permanently clenched fist, fingers tangled through the skirt of the small dress she wore, whiter than spring's first water-lily. The lack of colour was punctuated by a pair of black as night knee-high boots with buckles all the way up the sides. Neither garment he recognized. It only made her feel further away.

He tried to wear his anger like a shroud, depending upon it to keep the hurt at bay. That way, he wouldn't think about how good she looked. How he wanted to tuck her hair behind her ear for her. How he wanted to pull her in closer. How he never wanted her more than when he couldn't have her.

 _Stop it._

"What are you doing here?" He didn't bother sitting up, looking at Juvia with his head tilted back, just barely on the bed, so she was upside down.

Juvia stepped in and closed the door, then loosened her clutch on her skirt to wring her hands together nervously. "Um..." _What_ are _you doing here?_ Right. The stone in her pocket. She examined Gray's stained skin. He looked just as afflicted as he did earlier. Maybe it was worse. "I wanted to see how you were. Your mark."

He knitted his brows together. "I'm fine."

"You're not. You don't have to pretend, Gray-sama." The last slipped out and hung between them, a vestige of what they were to each other. Juvia looked torn as soon as she realized what she'd done, but there was no taking it back. Gray held onto _sama_ like a leech, happy (and guilty for it) to know that she still loved him. Or, on the other hand, maybe it was only habit. Juvia composed herself and came close enough that all he had to do was stretch out his arm and he'd be touching her. He imagined that he could feel the heat off her skin. Maybe he could; his own was so damned cold.

Juvia cleared her throat. "I spoke to one of my... friends about your mark, Gray. They think they can help. Kind of like Porlyusica did."

Gray did his best not to notice the way the sun came through the dingy window and made her hair as sapphires, the way her red as apples lips formed her words. Especially his name. It was easier when he thought of how she shared his personal business with some nobody. "Get out."

She was so surprised she almost obeyed, had one foot lifted off the ground. A force rooted her in place. "Please, Gray. You're a mess. That mark is all over your body. The last time this happened, you couldn't sleep for days, you stopped eating—"

"The mark was brand new then," Gray snapped.

"I know that, but it's happening again. Just let my friend—"

"What friend, huh? That stupid guard? I don't need anything from him." He thought of a hundred awful ways to finish his sentence but couldn't force any of them out, hurt but not so bad that he couldn't think about what it would be like after he dragged Juvia down with him.

Juvia's cheeks were undeniably pink. "It wasn't Riley—"

 _Riley._ He hated that name. "Don't even talk to me about him."

Juvia's throat turned red, too. "I'm _not_. You're the one that brought him up. My other friend that I met at the Thistle—"

"Suddenly there's more," Gray said venomously. "You've been staying in that place for a _day,_ Juvia. Barely even."

Juvia primed a variety of hurtful things to say, most of them revolving around Lucy. They all got stuck in her throat. "Look," she said as soon as she was able. "None of that matters. I—I want you to be safe, and I think this magic is dangerous. Please just let me help you." She extended her hand, showing the ruby-red stone resting in her palm. It looked benign, but Gray could feel the power seeping out of it. Juvia said, "Keep it on you and it should stop your devil slayer's magic."

Gray let that sink in for a beat. What would it be like, not always _itching_ to find a demon and destroy it? What would it be like to _think_ again, without this horrible pain in his skull? What would it be like not to be on the verge of snapping every second? It had only been bad since arriving in Magnolia, but it felt like he'd been stuck this way forever. Misery left an impression.

Suffocating the power he never asked for... _And you'd never kill END_. "I can't get rid of this power, Juvia. I need it."

Fluidly, she said, "It'll only work for as long as you have it." She had no idea if it were true or not. "If you need the magic again... just let go of the stone."

As good as it sounded, Gray didn't take it, still wary. "Why would some stranger give you a stone to stop my magic?" It didn't sit well with him.

"I told you, she's a friend, not a stranger," Juvia maintained. Eileen chirped in her mind. _'Make sure he keeps it on him.'_ She came closer still, thinking of all the ways to make him do just that. None of those thoughts felt original, as though they belonged to someone else. Her knees folded, dropping her to the questionably clean carpet just inches from Gray. His eyes tracked her movements, lingering on her body, her mouth, searching her eyes. She had his attention. Juvia said, "I was really worried about you after you came by this afternoon, so she said this could help."

They were so close, Gray could see her freckles and the flecks of silver in her deep-blue orbs. He stayed perfectly still as Juvia reached out and traced the black edge of his devil slayer's mark, tracking down his cheek and his neck. Her skin was so warm compared to his. "Just try it, Gray-sama. Please."

Gray closed his eyes, memorizing the sensation of her hands on his face, her voice. _Gray-sama._ He shouldn't like the sound of that _so much_. He'd spent years telling her not to bother calling him that, but suddenly now it was all he could think about. He reached over his head and found her hand before he knew what he was doing. Juvia relinquished the stone. As soon as he touched it, he felt his devil slayer's mark retreat, sucked down into his palm and thusly into the stone. It hurt. And then it felt good. The migraine faded, and the nausea he'd been carrying around for days. He breathed and it felt unburdened. The encroaching rage he'd been poorly staving off totally evaporated.

Juvia beamed. "It worked, see?"

And that scared him. He dropped the stone. The black snapped back into place so fast it left him dizzy. Gray turned on his side and looked down at the glowing stone lying inches from Juvia's knee. It pulsed with a weird red light. "It doesn't feel right."

"I'm sure it's strange. But you can let it go at any time." Juvia took his hand and turned it over so she could see the source of the mark. "Please keep it. Let it help you."

 _Let go any time_. Gray found himself saying, "Alright." Just because she asked. Just as a way of an apology. She attempted to let him go; Gray tightened his hold on her wrist, keeping her there for as long as he possibly could. It wasn't very long; it was as if the last few minutes hadn't happened, she was back to being guarded and wary and hurt all over again, pulling away from him and standing.

Yet, Gray wasn't ready to let her slip away, not now that she was here. "Stay for a bit, Juvia."

She shook her head. "I have to go." _Had to._ She felt the need way down into her toes.

"Wait. I want to talk." Not really, he didn't know where to start or what to say. But he knew he didn't want her to go. _Even if she was with someone else last night?_ Even if.

"No."

He kept talking anyway. "Listen. I didn't ask Lucy to come with me because I didn't want her to." With Juvia's touch lingering on his skin, he was sure of that. "I was really messed up, but I knew I wanted to go with you, Juvia—"

"I don't want to talk about it anymore, Gray. Not right now." Not when she had to get back to Akio.

Gray actually shoved his fingers through his hair and pulled it, feeling like he was going mad. "Where are you going?" What was more important than this?

Juvia was already turning away. "I hope that stone really does help you."

"Juvia, wait." He sat up more fully. "Please. I don't just want to talk about Lucy. I want to talk about what happened last night—"

Her shoulders were stiff, her eyes far away, perhaps remembering someone else's mouth. It burned Gray right to the core when she said so flippantly. "There isn't much to say:"

"Really? You take off with some guy you don't even know and there isn't much to say?"

Juvia's eyes flashed with anger and embarrassment. "We're not in love, so that's not really your business anymore."

"You know that's a lie, Juvia. You know I—" She put the door between them before Gray could finish. It didn't stop him from getting up and following her out into the hallway.

Juvia had only gotten a few steps in before she'd ploughed into an irritated redhead. It took Gray several seconds to fully recognize Erza, he was so absorbed in his own shit pile. It was her voice, really, that drilled through him with that sharp, no-nonsense tenor.

"Watch where you're going." Annoyance gave way to shock. "— _Juvia."_

Without a word, Juvia wriggled out of her grasp, slipperier than a snake, and hurried away.

Erza looked after her until she rounded the corner, then found Gray. "What was that about? And what's wrong with your skin?"

Gray scrubbed his face hard enough it hurt.

"Gray?"

He took his hands away and motioned for her to come into his room.

* * *

Every step that brought them closer to Gray's room made Natsu a little more squirrelly. He didn't know how to treat the ice mage. Were they still friends? More importantly, were they ever? They'd had differences, but this... His hands were getting hot with unwelcomed flames. Natsu couldn't stop his mind from whirling. He tried to think of something to say when that door opened. Broach the subject? ' _Hey, I heard you fucked Lucy the first chance you got_.' That'd go over well, he was sure. Ignore it? Say nothing at all because there was other, more important things he wanted to think about?

Gray's door opened before he had an answer and an unexpected figure stepped out.

Natsu was the first to grasp the situation. "Erza." She was dressed in a plain blue dress, and her finger was wrapped in some shitty—and filthy—splint, held together by sticks. Despite her unusual attire and injuries, she hadn't changed much at all, still at home in her scowl that was quick to give way to a smile.

"It took you long enough." She closed the distance and gathered him into a bone-crushing hug. She smelled like rain and blood and oil. Like Erza.

"I should be saying the same thing to you," Natsu said, words muffled against her shoulder. Even with the fabric bunging him up, it came out far more choked than he'd planned. Fairy Tail. It wasn't dead. Just limping along.

Erza leaned back so he could see her smile fall away. "We would have been here days ago, but we ran into some trouble."

 _Trouble_ jarred Natsu's memory, and deposited a stone firmly in his guts. He looked around Erza's shoulder, looking for Wendy but only seeing Gray. He was still mostly in his room, arms crossed over his chest, a pained expression on his sweaty face. His slayer's mark was doing weird things, shifting like it was alive, taking up more than half of his body, then easing back down, never stationary. Curious, but Natsu didn't bother to ask. He looked away from him before Gray realized he was being watched. "We ran into Zeref and he said you guys were attacked. Where's Wendy?"

"And Carla," Happy added, practically bouncing out of his skin.

Erza explained, "Wendy was thrown from a cliff."

"What?" Lucy cut in.

"Carla is with her right now in our room."

Before she finished, Natsu said, "But she's going to be okay, right?"

Erza took her arms from around Natsu's shoulders and went to Happy, then Loke, giving them the same treatment. "She hasn't woken. Gajeel and Levy went to find Porlyusica. I'm hoping she might be able to help."

"Levy's here, too?" Lucy asked.

Erza gathered her in for a hug last. "Yes. Why are you soaked, Lucy?"

"We ran into some trouble of our own," Loke said. "Lucy took a dive into the canal."

Erza leaned back and searched the blonde's eyes, then dropped lower, to take in the blood on her shirt. She missed nothing, as ever. "I have to take care of Wendy now, until Gajeel and Levy come back at least, but after you're cleaned up… we should talk, Lucy."

Lucy cleared her throat. "I'd like that."

"We're staying in thirty-three."

"Can I come with you?" Happy asked.

Erza wavered for a millisecond. "Alright. But you have to promise to be quiet. Don't disturb Wendy. And don't annoy Carla, either. She's been through a lot."

"Aye," Happy agreed.

Gray stepped out of the room and tried to move past the group. Loke grabbed his arm, pulling him up short. "There're demons hanging around, eh?"

"Yeah, I got the message," Gray replied. "I want to tell Juvia."

Loke released him. "You want some company?"

Gray shook his head. Avoiding Natsu's scowl was difficult. There was no doubt in the ice mage's mind that the truth had come out. He couldn't think about that, though, not when he felt so dizzy he could fall over. Moving helped. So did deep breaths. The further away from the group he got, the better he felt. He walked faster.

* * *

While Lucy showered, Natsu looked at the bed they'd shared for the last few days, wondering what it meant. Across the room, Loke watched. "You heard what Happy said, eh? Lucy killed that demon."

The dragon slayer dragged himself out of his self-depreciation. "What's that?"

"The demon that attacked us. She killed it," Loke repeated. "It really rattled her. The spell wasn't supposed to happen like that."

"That's shitty," Natsu said finally, not having too much else.

The look Loke gave him was brimming with discontent. "What I mean is, she's going to need someone to talk to, Natsu. Erza means well, and she'll be a good ear, but I know Lucy would appreciate it if it were you," Loke said. "The person that knows her best."

Natsu looked at him sideways, considering.

In the silence, Loke continued. "You two have been friends for a long time. If this thing that happened with Gray means that you can't be anything more, well… then so be it. But I know she means more to you than just that. Be her friend. She needs it." With that he faded back into the celestial realm.

Natsu stared at where Loke had been for a long time, thinking about the spirit's words. He stared until the bathroom door opened and Lucy came out, smelling like strawberry shampoo. He stared until she slipped on a pair of flats and ducked out of the door into the hallway. Long minutes of inaction passed.

' _She's going to need someone.'_

 _'To cut the thread of dreaming.'_

 _'END.'_

Chilled to the bone and already tired of being on his own, he stood and followed Lucy. Her trail was easy to find, straight and true through the motel to the balcony doors. Back to where he'd found her and Gray a couple of nights before. He faltered, hand resting on the doorknob. He wondered what he'd do if he opened the door and saw them together again. Who knew?

 _Stop procrastinating and just do it._ The hinges were more silent than Natsu anticipated. Or maybe he was just trying to be quiet.

Back to him, Lucy leaned over the balcony, hair getting grabbed by the wind, skin kissed in pale moonlight. He realized what he hadn't earlier: she'd changed, now in a pair of tights and an oversized grey sweater. Morosely, she looked out at the skeleton that was Magnolia and plucked at her fingernails, scraping off the orange nail polish that had been chipping for days.

"Are you waiting for Gray?" He didn't _mean_ for those to be his first words. Honest. They just slipped out.

Lucy jumped and whirled. "Natsu. You scared me."

He looked at her expectantly, holding his breath for her answer.

Lucy regrouped. "I wasn't waiting for anyone. I was trying to clear my head."

Natsu let the door close the rest of the way and stepped up to her side. He'd never felt more awkward around Lucy. He tugged at the end of his scarf just for something to do. It didn't help alleviate his stress. He decided to talk instead. "What happened today?"

Lucy pushed her hair away from her mouth. "I don't know."

"Happy said there was a demon," Natsu prodded.

"Yes." Her voice dropped to barely a whisper.

"And…" He tried to pull up some of his old cheer. "He said you kicked some ass."

Lucy's chin warbled. "I don't know."

Natsu dug his nails into his palm to feel the hard skin. "What do you mean you don't know?"

The first tear signified a break in the dam. Seconds later, her cheeks were soaked and her breath was hiccupping right along. "I killed it."

"Yeah," Natsu agreed. "Happy said—"

"It wasn't supposed to happen like that, Natsu," Lucy said in a rush, trying to make him understand. "It was just… I panicked, and the spell went wrong… and then she was shot—and it was _horrible_. I can still _hear_ it. She just kind of… _popped._ Ugh." Her body moved, trapped between a shiver and a gag.

She looked so frail with her wet cheeks and bruised neck and wracking shoulders. _Breaking._ Or _broken._ Natsu did the only thing he could think of and gathered her in for a hug, squeezing tight, imagining he could could put all of the pieces back together again. He held her until she stopped shuddering and came away from the edge of a panic attack. When he felt it was safe, he said, "If you didn't do what you did, you could be dead." It was too easy, especially now with Lucy leaning against him much as Valentina had leaned against Zeref, to imagine her as Valentina had been. This breath here would be the last. Her fingers fisting in his sweater would loosen. Her mouth would go slack and she'd slump, limper than a wilted flower cut free of its stem and left to rot in the humidity. A thought hit him hard and fast. _I don't want that. I don't want to lose her. Not for anything._ Not because of a story Zeref told him that may or may not be true, and not because of some stupid night a long time ago.

Lucy gathered breath and said, "I know she was attacking us. I just keep asking myself, what if this means that I shouldn't be using those spells, Natsu, if I can't control them?"

The violent upheaval of magic Natsu had experienced earlier vied with Valentina for his attention. "I know what it's like to feel like you have no control."

Lucy leaned back to look at him. She was pretty when she cried, cheeks rosy even by the light of the moon. "You're always in control."

He didn't bother correcting her, thinking maybe if she _thought_ it was true, perhaps it _could_ be. "It's too late to turn around and change things, Lucy. You just gotta go with it. Yeah, you killed a demon, yeah, you hadn't planned on it. But it was a _demon_." _From the Book of Zeref. Just like you, brother._ Natsu pushed the unwelcomed thought delivered by Zeref's voice well aside. "More importantly, it was trying to _kill you_."

Her chin warbled again. "I _know._ But I keep remembering the way it fell. I can't stop thinking about it. I had to throw out my clothes, even though Virgo said the blood would come out. And I keep wondering about using my magic again, you know? Like, _can_ I? Or am I just going to mess it up again next time?"

Natsu squeezed the fabric of Lucy's sweater, glad to be able to submerse himself in her problems. He knew how to handle them better than his own. "You love being a mage. You love your spirits. You won't give that up."

Lucy couldn't help but get stuck on the details. _Won't,_ not _can't._ As if he knew her heart better than she did. Maybe it was true.

"You're strong, Lucy," Natsu finished. "This isn't going to stop you."

She didn't want to let him go to swipe away her tears. That was alright, Natsu did it for her, rubbing his thumb across her face in a way that was far gentler than he'd ever been before. Then he tilted her chin up so he was looking into her eyes. "Right?"

"I don't—"

He didn't want any other answer. "Right?"

Lucy's eyes got even waterier. She blinked them clear, shucking off the tears. "Yeah."

Her affirmation was delivered in a weak voice, but it was better than nothing. He rubbed her cheeks again. This time they stayed mostly dry. He didn't want to let her go, though. _'If we're going to do this…'_ He pushed the thought away. "Do you think about him?"

"Him?" Lucy asked.

"Gray," he clarified. His heart was doing strange things. _You're scared of her answer,_ he realized.

"I—no."

"Not ever?"

"Not like that," Lucy said.

He kissed her before he lost his nerve. Lucy's mouth was unresponsive for two heartbeats, then she moved her lips just enough that Natsu knew she wanted to be kissed _. Cut the thread of dreaming_. He tightened his fingers and realized that he'd grabbed her at the waist, now clutching the fabric of her shirt. He could hold her like this forever, relishing in the feeling of this _thing_ he could have that Zeref was denied. Something so seemingly frivolous but undeniably important. He didn't want to give it up, yet he eased back before he could forget to and breathed her in. She was alive. She was a girl, not a piece of string, and no one was cutting her loose.

Lucy kept her eyes closed to ask, "What does that mean?"

Natsu licked his lips, tasting her there. "What do you mean, what does that mean?"

Lucy sniffed, still stuffy, and opened her eyes. "I don't know. You walked out, Natsu, after I told you about that stuff—"

Natsu tightened his hold on her sweater so much so he thought it would tear. "If you're not out here thinking about him, then I don't care." It was even mostly true. He congratulated himself. There was nothing quite like living through watching the woman you love die, though, even if it wasn't _him_ exactly. It had happened to Zeref so long ago, but in those memories... Natsu knew the dark mage lived through it again and again every night, torturing himself. _And now you can, too_. There was no help for the wave of sympathy he felt. He clutched Lucy harder, helplessly imagining the same thing happening to her. _Stop thinking about it._

Lucy stood on tiptoe, finding his mouth. It made distancing himself from his thoughts both more difficult and infinitely easier. He pressed against her, so the balcony dug into her back, and kissed her more firmly.

* * *

The Thorn and Thistle had never been fuller, yet finding Juvia was easy, like he was homing in on her or something. She was sitting at the guard's table _again_ , trapped not only in Riley Ackles' arm, but in a woman's as well, one with hair of a rich pink. Gray leaned back against the bar and watched them, imagining himself going over there to warn her about those demons. No matter how he twisted it, it felt like just an excuse to talk to her. To interrupt and ruin her night. _Then wait._ She couldn't stay there all night, right? He ordered a shot of whisky and watched, sickly fascinated.

Beside Juvia, Ackles looked like a pig happy in a bed of shit, a giant grin on his face as he leaned into her ear and whispered something that made her go several shades brighter. The woman leaned in next, treating Juvia with some other perverse secret that made the water mage flush and squirm. Juvia said something that Gray _wished_ he could hear. The woman laughed, kissed Juvia's cheek sloppily, then rose and flounced to the bar.

Halfway across the floor, her eyes met Gray's. She wouldn't let him go, staring him down until she was nestled between him and another patron at her back. "Hi."

Gray smiled dismissively and went back to looking at Juvia. She wasn't laughing, but there _was_ a quirk to her lips that could be enjoyment. It was only for a moment, but in that time, Gray hated her for having a good time while he suffered through several types of hell. _It's your own doing._ He could have told her sooner and all of this would have been avoided. Juvia was understanding and loved him more than she loved herself. At least she used to. But no. He could have grabbed the stone and dampened the sick feeling in his stomach instead of leaving it in his room. But no. Apparently he liked the torture.

The woman brought him back to the bar by touching his arm. "Are you here on your own?"

Gray refocused. "Yeah."

She looked him over with dark eyes. "Did you want to come have a few drinks with us?"

Sit at the same table as Juvia and watched her get pawed at. He looked over in time to see Ackles trace his fingers up Juvia's arm. "No."

"Oh." The woman wasn't deterred. "Can I buy _you_ a few drinks then?"

Gray considered her. The aching pain in his arm really solidified his decision. "Yeah."

* * *

Though it has been blisteringly hot during the day, the night had cast its chill. Propane exhaust rose from the back of the Thorn and Thistle and condensed, giving the world a frosted quality. Stepping into that opaque smoke, Gray was keenly aware of how his head spun and ached; his skin was crawling. It had gotten better when he left Briar's Lock, but now as the night went on he was feeling like shit again. It probably didn't help that he was mostly drunk.

The woman before him tromped through the broken glass and other detritus, needles, cigarette butts, cups, looking otherworldly. Her fingernails dug into his skin, feeling more like blades.

Gray turned his senses outward. The night was quiet save for disconnected laughter trilling and bouncing off the building. He tripped on a soggy piece of cardboard. The Thorn and Thistle was a dump, as trashy as it had been when he got hammered that night with Lucy. Maybe it was worse, deprived of its usual monies because Magnolia was struggling so.

"This way." The woman tugged him up and led on when he lagged behind. Her coral coloured hair gleamed in the moonlight. She looked over her shoulder, black-lined eyes flashing.

Gray corrected his steps, letting her pull him into the crux of the alley, a small nook where barely any of the street light reached. She twisted so Gray's back was against the wall, then pressed her body firmly against his. There was no space between them, except enough to allow her hand to side against his chest. His shirt was open; he didn't remember undoing it, but he must have. Her lips landed on his neck. Then her tongue. She licked, moaning hotly. The sound vibrated his skin.

She abandoned his chest so she could tear open the front of her dress. She wasn't wearing anything beneath. Her breasts against his skin were hot. Between his legs swelled, an automatic reaction. Gray tipped his head to the sky and watched the moon slide behind a group of clouds. Then he closed his eyes and took in a stabilizing breath, searching for answers.

"Touch me," she said.

He opened his eyes and peered at her through the fan of his lashes. She was trying to catch him with her gaze. Gray obeyed, sliding his hand up her body, between her breasts to the center part of her sternum. "Like this?"

"Almost." She made him grope her. Gray went along for a moment, deciding his next move carefully. The woman tugged her dress lower. Her skin was iridescent. Her hair skimmed over his hand. She moaned in such a way that was difficult to keep separate from. He wished this was something he could enjoy while Juvia was out with someone else.

But...

His skin got cold, his arm ached. The cold expanded into the woman's body.

Her eyes widened with genuine surprise. "What are you doing?"

"I wasn't sure in there," Gray said, "but now I know." He forced the magic through his body; he didn't have to try all that hard, it was hungry. Always. Her skin started to rapidly freeze. She yelled and attempted to stumble away. Gray grabbed her tight around the waist and held her determinedly so there was nowhere to go.

She wailed and scratched at him, human skin falling away. Now she was luminous scales and sharp claws, beautiful in the same way a deadly snake was. Gray held tighter, refusing to let her get an inch between them, knowing that if he did, he ran the risk of dying. Giving a demon the upper hand was inviting disaster.

"It was you, wasn't it? Killing all those girls?"

She started to gather power. Gray forced more magic into her, freezing her nearly solid. She gasped for air, in pain and paralyzed.

"Answer me!"

She had looked panicked, but coming to quick terms with her situation, she started to laugh. "No. No, stupid devil slayer. It wasn't me."

"Lying won't save your life."

"Oh," she agreed, "I know. She warned me you liked to hunt demons. It doesn't matter if I live or die, though. Lady Akio will live on without me and kill you and no one will be sad." She snorted. "She didn't even have to take everything from you, you threw it all away yourself. Your guild, your friends, your lover."

Gray gritted his teeth together and let his father's magic come pouring out of his body. It was like bloodletting, it was like orgasming, it was like throwing himself off the steepest ledge he could find and finding the bottom was spread with sharp glass. The pain and pleasure intermixed until it was all he could think about. His devil slayer's magic was made for killing demons, and thusly so was he. Only distantly did he think of Juvia and her candy-red lips, her soulful blue eyes boring into him as she held out that peculiar red crystal, begging him to do what he didn't think he could. The want for demon blood was too strong. The need even more so.

 _'Please, Gray-sama.' Sama._ He wondered if she knew she was Persephone all over again, though she swore she didn't love him.

He left the demon, only dust and ice crystals now, in favour of a stool at the Thorn and Thistle and a bottle of whisky he knew he could have if he asked real sweet, that way he could have a front-row seat to the way both he and Juvia seemed to sabotage everything they touched.

* * *

Bits of crumbled brick stuck to Makarov Dreyar's hands, left behind by the window ledge he perched upon inside the ancient structure that acted as a castle or sorts. Normally, he'd be too short to see beyond, but he'd made himself just tall enough to peak over the ledge. The smell of rock and dust and mud was thick in the air. And the smell of leather and metal and, faintly, blood. Outside, the din was deafening. No birds could be heard over the shouts of men and women, talking, joking, clanking in their armour, lined up in neat rows for inspection.

As soon as he saw the battle-ready unit, his heart sank. There was only one place they'd be marching on.

A boot scuffed over the ground, close to left. Makarov caught his breath and turned, facing a young woman.

"Master Makarov." Her thick western accent made it difficult to understand her. "I do believe you're not supposed to be in this part of the castle."

"Forgive me, Dimaria," Makarov said with a false smile. "I got lost on my way to the bathroom."

She returned his smile. "Then you are very, very lost. This way."

"I thought Emperor Spriggan would have returned by now." Makarov doddled, trying to think of a way to hinder their preparations.

"His Majesty is very busy," she replied.

"Arming forces to march on Fiore?" Makarov said casually.

Dimaria came to a stop and faced him. There was no hesitation as she said, "On Fiore? Is that what you think?"

"All of the reports have said so. Why do you think I'm here? For the scenery?" Makarov asked. "I was hoping your emperor would be a man of reason."

"Well." She started walking again. "You're wrong. On both accounts, especially when he wants something."

"What do you mean?" Makarov asked.

She looked down at him, eyes flashing. "That unit out there? They have a much smaller target. One near and dear to you, I believe."

Makarov's chest got tight. He lengthened his steps to catch up. "And what's that?"

Dimaria's grin was bright. "Fairy Tail, of course. Your guild is gathering again, Makarov, and his Majesty wants it gone."

 _Fairy Tail.._. "What does he want with Fairy Tail?"

"Oh..." she looked thoughtful. "If I knew... I still wouldn't tell you."

Makarov stopped. "I think our time together has come to an end, Dimaria. You've been very hospitable. Excuse me."

She stopped too. "I'm afraid you'll have to stay here, whether you like it or not. His majesty wants our visit to be a surprise."

"I think not. You'll meet resistance if you try to hold me here."

"That's a shame, Master Makarov."

Makarov blinked. When his eyes came open again, Diamaria wasn't where he'd left her. She was at his side, and there was a terrible pain just beneath his ribs. Groaning, he clutched the area, confused when his fingers met something wet and warm. Confusion only grew when he lifted his fingers and saw that it was blood. It dropped from his side and patterned against the floor. The wound was a bad one. Lethal, if he was any judge. Never one to go down without a fight, he gathered his magic and forced his body to change, becoming larger, stronger. The roof over his head cracked and broke apart, bits of stone raining down on Dimaria. Distantly, Makarov was aware of the men and women screaming. He said a silent prayer for all that would lose their lives today because of the selfish actions of both he and their emperor. Before he was through, he was smashing through their ranks with his fists, stealing the lives of people whose names he didn't know. He didn't get as far as he would have liked.

Without knowing what was happening, he blinked at Dimaria was there again, brandishing her sword. The next cut she gifted him bled far more generously than the one before, his heart punctured.

In death, he shrank back to his true size.

Dimaria's western inflection was the last thing he heard. "I'll be sure you're buried in your own soil by your own people."


	21. Chapter 21

Sometime between the shower and the balcony, Lucy had swiped cherry lip balm across her mouth. It was all Natsu could taste; it was all he _wanted_ to taste. Cold iron dug into his palms as he gripped the railing at the girl's back, pinning her between it and his body; the motion hurt his hand. He used the pain as an excuse to take her by the hips instead. She was much softer and warmer. Her arms went around his neck and he went up inside her overlarge sweater, feeling her smooth skin.

Shouts from Magnolia's streets drifted up to the balcony. The Thorn and Thistle was rioting again, on the verge of another bar fight, or just rowdy. People laughed, people screamed, people cried. _Magnolia isn't so dead_. It just needed the nighttime to feel alive.

Lucy's teeth clamped down on his bottom lip, sending a thrill from his head to his toes. Natsu was surprised at the rumble that came from his chest, and the fierceness he felt. Nervousness was left behind as he allowed his fingers to travel north up Lucy's rib line. She didn't stop him, not until he got to the underwire of her bra and tried to get beneath that, too.

Her mouth came away. "Wait."

Natsu stopped his travel and searched her eyes. Wide as pits and as black as them too, like the girls torn apart and left behind. The connection made, it was easy to next reimagine Lucy standing on the precipice of a very long drop. Or laying splayed on the ground while a creature did things to her that would haunt his subconscious forever. His erection started to wither. He wanted to go back to kissing her so he didn't have to entertain any delusions, but she seemed uncomfortable. He had to swallow to make his throat work. "What is it?"

Lucy looked over her shoulder to the bar down below. The door opened and closed with frequency, allowing a loud band to seep into the night. She thought she caught sight of a familiar figure making his way inside the place, shirt undone. She looked away. "Let's go inside so we don't have to worry about anyone seeing us."

And just like that, Natsu's erection was back. Through their bodies, he felt Lucy's heart speed. Even if they weren't so close, he would have heard it _drum, drum, drumming_. Maybe he should have, but he didn't ask if she was sure, not knowing what he'd do if she said no.

She took his hand and led him back in through the balcony door and down the smoke-choked hallway. The smell was pungent and made Natsu's head a little woozy. He breathed shallowly, his senses far too sensitive, and walked faster. Their room offered air that smelled only like mildew and shampoo and not drugs. He closed the door. Lucy locked it.

Like she was someone else, someone braver, someone more shameless, someone experienced, she walked to the bed, shucking off her sweater as she went. It found home on the floor. Her hands played at the waist of her tights. Natsu's ears roared. He waited for her to take those off, too, unsure if he'd turn away or stare as they came down her body. She didn't, though, only pulled them higher, adjusting them on her hips. The relief he felt was palpable. As was the frustration. Like a hawk, he watched her sink to the mattress, blonde tresses glittering in the moonlight. Silhouetted, he couldn't see her face, but he knew every slope of her nose, her mouth, and was able to perfectly envision the way she fluttered her lashes when she was nervous.

"Come here, Natsu."

Natsu realized he was still sedentary, frozen in place, heart pulsating, cock throbbing, lungs convulsing, waiting for the breath he hadn't taken. He breathed in and came unglued, crossing the room to her side. And then he just stood there, like he had no idea what to do.

"Off." Lucy tugged at the hem of his sweater. Natsu couldn't obey fast enough. The neck hole got caught on his chin. He nearly tore it in his haste. By some grace, he managed to get it off without anything hazardous happening. His cheeks were burning by the end of it, though.

Lucy didn't seem to notice or she didn't care. She took his hand in hers, thumb playing over his cracked and knobby knuckles, feeling the scars, the old and new alike. She kissed the tips of his fingers, starting on the middle and working her way to his thumb. Next, she turned his hand over and kissed the black spot, more incautious of it than Natsu was—he kept wondering what it meant, why the skin was changing, and what would happen when it stopped.

The area got hot; almost too hot to bear. Then she was moving again and the heat fizzled. Her lips landed on his wrist. She stopped there, breath panting.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes." She looked at him through a fringe of hair. "Are you scared?" Her voice was also uneven.

 _Scared_? He thought to lie; the truth came out. "I don't know. Maybe."

She relaxed, smiling just a little. Movements sure and practiced, she reached behind herself and unclipped her bra. Natsu's ears roared more. Maybe his admission made her feel better, but it didn't do anything for him. The material came over Lucy's shoulders, sliding from her skin, and dropping to the floor along with her shirt, and Natsu's eyes got stuck to her body.

Her breasts were as full as he remembered, creamy roses at the tips. He forgot to breathe again, remembering only when she lay back against the bed and tugged him down with her. It was awkward getting between her legs, the bed buckling and squealing noisily, Lucy's knee digging into his ribs before she moved her leg, her hair getting caught beneath her body until she lifted it up and lay it over her shoulder. It was pure gold kissing her skin. Her arms came back around his neck again, guiding him in to her once more when he forgot what to do, though it wasn't the first time he'd done it.

Her mouth felt hotter, her skin, too, smooth and soft. Natsu felt every bit of bare flesh that touched his body and got harder. His breath hiccupped along, the kiss turning sloppy with the blind need that overcame him.

Lucy's leg was looped over his arm before he realized that he'd done it, spreading her wider. There was still so much material between them. He thought of removing it, but he wanted to touch her now. Using her thigh as a roadway, he eased down, fingers searching for the place between her legs. With every inch gained, her kiss faltered, her focus snagging solely on sensation. She was warm and wet, felt even through the material. On contact, Lucy's eyes fluttered closed and her mouth cracked open, letting out a low moan. Natsu crushed their mouths together, driven on by an urge to taste it. The noise vibrated his tongue and traveled throughout his entire body. It was hard to remain thoughtful and in control, especially when all he wanted to do was lose himself in this, forget so much. For long seconds he did nothing, trying to organize all of his motions in a linear fashion so he could think about what to do next.

Lucy's voice reached his ears, her words mumbled against his mouth, telling him what to do. "Keep going,"

A thrill moved through him. As calmly as possible, he swirled his thumb over her body, closing his eyes and letting touch and Lucy's reactions guide his ministrations. She bowed into him and turned her head so she could moan. Natsu kissed her neck, wanting to have some part of her under his lips always. He was gentle, aware of the still swollen hand-shaped bruise. Her breath hitched. He pressed into her harder, trying to duplicate the sound. It came again. Her fingers tightened in his hair, words came from her mouth, nonsense praises that started with "Yes," and "More," ended in a huge gasping breath and several cusses he didn't even know that she knew. He grabbed her breast clumsily, lifting himself up just enough that he could squeeze. Her breath hitched again. He found the tip and rolled it between his thumb and forefinger, pulling lightly when she crooned in a way he'd never heard before. Her body got as tight as a bow, then went totally limp, an orgasm moving through her.

Natsu moved his thumb in another light circle, earning him a catch of breath. He let his eyes come open. Lucy's were still closed. Her cheeks were red and her lips were swollen from use. He kissed her again and got hardly any response. Forcing patience, he waited for her to open her eyes, to say something.

When her eyelids finally did flutter, she stared past him at the ceiling, panting. He kissed her throat this time. Her skin shivered beneath his mouth, but she didn't respond.

He rolled off her, taking to laying at her side to let her make the next move. His body was pulsing. Long seconds whittled past in where he waited and waited for Lucy to reach over and touch him. But she didn't. He imagined what she was thinking. The longer the lack of contact went on for, the more insecure his thoughts became. It was a state he was unused to. He almost turned to her and asked if it was (not as good as Gray) okay. He almost demanded to know what she was thinking.

He wasn't brave enough.

Bedsprings squealed beneath his weight. Despite his uncertainty, his erection strained against his pants and likely would until he took care of it. Head spinning, heart aching, he moved toward the washroom to do just that. And then afterward? He had no idea.

"Natsu," Lucy called him back. He dared to look over his shoulder. Her hair was silver in the moonlight, paler than it had ever been before. It framed her face and her full breasts. She was plump in all of the right places, soft. She'd be giving if he could just...

"Come here." She held out her hand.

He swallowed a thick lump in his throat, very, very aware of his body, of hers. His feet took him when his head hesitated, depositing him at the edge of the narrow bed. Lucy sat up and laid her cool hands against his bare stomach. He jumped, he couldn't help it, sensitive to touch and to the cold. She looked up and met his eyes. He used the opportunity to search for her motives. All he could see was exactly what he wanted to.

"Lucy..." She kissed the skin above his belt. Her tongue came out next, sliding over the sensitive area, thoroughly silencing him; not that he had any idea of what he was going to say.

She kissed him again, mouth wet, lips soft, breath hot breaking over his abdomen, and started on his belt. Natsu didn't think it was possible to get harder, but he did. So much so that it hurt. The pants came undone and slid down his hips.

Free, his own breath matched Lucy's, uneven. He swallowed again and leaned back just a little so he could see her more clearly, to make sure that this was actually happening. That he wasn't imagining it. That he wasn't ( _cut the thread_ ) dreaming. That she was about to enjoy it as much as he was.

She licked her lips, then kissed the upper most part of his hip, and lower, mouth drawing a trail to the only place he could seem to think about. His throat was dry, dry, dry. She kissed his base with just her lips, and then her tongue, and Natsu forgot to be apprehensive or nervous. He allowed himself to lace his fingers through her hair, holding her loosely. Her eyes came up to meet his again, then she opened her mouth and took him inside.

Colour exploded behind his eyes, his whole body tingled. The aching he'd felt eased as the blonde fell into a slow rhythm, movements methodical and purposeful; everything she did was designed to make his knees weak, and it was working. Natsu held her tighter and focused on the sensation, on her hands digging into his thighs, and Lucy's slipping reserve. Her movements got faster, Natsu got louder, surprised himself by the noises he made. Encouraged, Lucy took him deeper and did something with her tongue that Natsu couldn't place, but also couldn't forget.

She worked him tirelessly for only moments, so she was just as surprised as Natsu was when an orgasm hit, unexpected and hard. Paralyzed, he clenched his fingers in her hair and held her tight to his body, riding out the sensation. The suddenness of it left him feeling especially weak-kneed. Locking his legs and staying perfectly still kept him safe from gravity.

Eventually, he convinced himself to loosen his hold on Lucy's hair and let her lean back to breathe. She wiped her mouth with unsteady hands, then fixed her hair. Natsu gathered some dexterity and tucked himself into his pants again. Afterward, zipper done up, he just looked at her awkwardly, trying to think of something to say. _Sorry it wasn't longer_? Terrible. _Thanks_? Was that an appropriate response when your best friend decided that they wanted to be a little something more? The girl looked pleased enough all on her own without awkward conversation, so Natsu let the words fade.

Lucy shuffled over and patted the bed beside her, inviting him down. "Lay with me."

He didn't need to be told twice, wanting to be close to her, even if there was an unsettled feeling in his chest. _What's wrong_? The answer felt just outside of his grasp. _Maybe it's Zeref's memories._ Maybe. He didn't think so, though.

Lucy curled into his side, tucking her face into his shoulder while he wrapped his arm around her body and pulled her in tight. She smelled good. Her fingers swirled over his chest, finding a light trail of hair to follow all the way down to the waistband of his pants. His body stirred again, tickled as much as teased.

"What are you thinking?"

Natsu was about to say _'Nothing'_ but that was a lie. He finally pinpointed the source of his disquiet. Maybe it was a bit too late after _that,_ but he asked anyway. "Why Gray?"

Lucy went so still, she hardly breathed. The quiet went on for so long, Natsu thought she wouldn't answer. Then she started talking and his focus narrowed.

"I thought about that a lot. At first... I told myself it was because I was drunk. Loke told me that was an excuse, not a reason." She found the leather ridge of his belt and started plucking at it for something to do while she waited for Natsu to prod her into speaking again. He mostly wanted her to stop so he didn't say a word. Lucy found the will to continue all on her own. "So then I had to look at other things. I guess… I always sort of liked Gray. Not like I was in love with him. Not like that. He was a really good friend. We saw eye-to-eye on a lot of things. He was always there when I needed him to be. And… he was there when you weren't." Her fingers plucked more forcefully, like that could diffuse the punch of her words. Not fucking likely. Despite his tense muscles, Lucy continued as unashamedly as she could. Cushioning the truth didn't make it any less true after all. "I don't know what I was thinking. I—the guild was gone, but not only that, everyone was leaving Magnolia. No one asked me to go with them, or even seemed to care what I was doing. They were so busy trying to put themselves back in order. I just felt… like I was washed out with the tide, you know, forgotten. The one person I thought would always keep me afloat just left. And what was I given? A vague fucking note." She tightened her hand into a fist, still angry even after all this time. "It wasn't fair. I thought we meant more to each other than that. I thought—I don't know what I thought."

She paused for a while. Natsu thought (hoped) that was the end of it, but she regrouped her thoughts and started again. "And then Gray came along, and he seemed to need someone as much as I did after Silver—well, you know."

"He had Juvia," Natsu managed to say, though he told himself to _be quiet._ There was a quiet rage in his heart that wouldn't be completely satiated.

Lucy pushed her hair back from her forehead. "He was hurt. I guess ultimately, it was Juvia's actions that ended Silver's life and he hadn't figured out how he felt about that yet."

Could what Silver had really be called 'life?' "His father was practically a puppet," Natsu said. "Gray should have been thanking her."

Lucy met his eyes. Hers were glossy in the nighttime, wet with tears. "It was his father, Natsu. Mercy aside, he was hurt. You're one of the most compassionate people I've ever met; I know you can sympathize."

"He—" _What_? _Stole a girl you hadn't paid much attention to, too consumed with everything else_? His fingers pricked with unrealized fire. He kept the magic tamped down with a great deal of effort; it felt wild, not quite his own. _Brother. Demon. END._ His hand was icy. Fingering the scales was inevitable, as was the realization that they'd spread. He breathed on a one-two count.

Lucy saved him from the very edge of panic, pulling him back just a few inches with her voice and the very _human_ problem at hand. "He was confused. We all were."

Natsu's contempt only grew, but he found it within himself to shut his mouth and let her keep talking.

"Anyway, He told me he was going to tell Juvia that whatever they had was through. And…" This part was hard to say. The shame was potent. She made the words come as factually as she could manage, figuring it was something that was best delivered in a cool, matter-of-fact way. "He told me he was going to stay with me, Natsu. I didn't want to be alone. It was wrong, I know, but I wanted… _something_ , and there Gray was, willing to offer it. Or so I thought."

A burning throat didn't stop the dragon slayer from asking, "What do you mean?"

She found a wall to look at instead of Natsu's intense gaze. "Gray left that night without saying a word. It was Cana that told me the next day that he'd gone with Juvia. I guess he decided that he forgave her after all." And the guilt was all the more intense. That night, Lucy had been able to smother it with copious amounts of alcohol and the justification that it was through for Juvia and Gray. Afterward, though, there had been nowhere to hide. "I feel so... I don't know. I didn't like the Lucy that existed that night." She knew she had no business saying it, but Lucy found her mouth moving around the words. "I wish you didn't leave." Like this was somehow _his_ fault.

Natsu didn't respond. Nor did he move. Not to bring her closer. Not to push her away. He only breathed, absorbing her words and her blame, turning them around in his head while he decided what to say to _that_ unfair accusation. Whether she said in so many words or not, she blamed him for her lapse in judgement.

Eventually, he said, "Fairy Tail was the only thing I knew."

Lucy lifted her head and found Natsu in the darkness. "What?"

"When Igneel died."

"I'm not following."

Natsu couldn't bring himself to look at her for a myriad of reasons, sort of ashamed, sort of angry. "The reason I left. I said it was for training, and it was. I realized I'd never be able to defeat Zeref as I was. I couldn't protect the people I loved. I thought about coming back for you. Happy suggested it every day for the first month. But when I got out there... I realized that I wanted to be alone, Lucy. I wanted to be away from everything I've known. So I knew who I was without Fairy Tail. Without looking for Igneel. Both have dictated every decision I've made since I was old enough to make them. I wanted to see if I could be a person without them. Without everyone else to think about." It was the most selfish he'd ever been. And he wasn't proud of it. But the truth had a way of making itself known, he'd learned. Best to do it on his own grounds.

Lucy made her breath come evenly even though her lungs tried to spasm and her eyes were wet with tears. "You wanted to get away from us." _Why not Happy,_ she thought but didn't add. This was hard enough.

Natsu found the light fixture on the ceiling; it was covered in cobwebs. "Maybe a little, yeah. I always thought I'd come back, though, and I thought you'd be there waiting for me."

Lucy started to cry for real. "You just expected—"

He finally pulled her closer, muffling not only her words against his shoulder but the unfamiliar presence in his body, the one that felt a little irrational and a lot like a monster. "We both fucked up. The question is, can we forgive each other?"

Lucy sniffled. Faintly, she could smell the soap and shampoo he'd used, something full of lemon. His bare skin pressed against hers and she knew she was faltering, the last of her bitterness was slowly being burned away. "Can you tell me in person the next time you need a self-discovery journey?"

Lucy's hair was between his fingers, soft as satin. He tugged through it, getting caught on the tangles. She didn't flinch. He didn't apologize. "Can you tell me for sure you and Gray were just a one-time thing?" He couldn't spend the rest of his life wondering.

"Yes."

He turned into her, wrapped his free arm around her body, crushing her to the bed beneath his weight. He kissed her forehead and closed his eyes, cheek resting against hers. "If I need to go… we'll talk next time, Lucy."

She wished instead he'd say he'd never do it again, but Natsu never wanted to be a liar. She appreciated it, even if it made her sad.

Eventually, Lucy's breath evened out. It wasn't long after Natsu was taken into dream by a familiar force, though he thought he was through with everything Zeref wanted to show him.

* * *

If left to her own devices, Erza could have paced a hole through the carpet of their dingy motel room. She barely noticed the restless movement, looking out at the dark sky and the spotty streetlights so far down below. It had been hours since Gajeel and Levy left. It didn't take that long to travel to Porlyusica's. The woman was barely outside of town.

"Do you think the clerk can be trusted to relayed our location?"

Carla looked up from Wendy's pale body. "Yes."

"Then why haven't they shown up?"

"I don't know."

Lily looked up from where he sharpened his sword. "I'm getting worried, too."

"I should search for them." Erza glanced at Carla as she spoke, feeling guilty. The cat was _exhausted_ , so much so that her humanoid form had dwindled away; just in time, too, Happy was looking a little down on himself with Carla and Lily side-by-side.

"I can go look," Happy suggested.

"It should be me," Erza said. Not that she didn't trust him. But she didn't trust him.

"You haven't slept for days," Carla said. "It should be Happy."

Erza paced faster. "I'm the best warrior we have. If there's trouble, I could diffuse it."

"You mean you could beat them into submission," Happy said, cheeks touched with a glow of his old mirth.

The joke was lost on Erza. "Exactly."

Lily's lip pouted out in displeasure. "I've been known to get out of a scuffle or two myself. The obvious choice is me."

Erza shot him a furtive look. It made sense, of course it did, but she was feeling trapped. She wanted to get out. She wanted to stay. She didn't know _what_ she wanted, really.

Carla lifted her paws and scrubbed her face. "Please stop pacing. You're making me anxious, Erza."

"You were anxious before I started," Erza sniped.

" _Yes_ , and you're making it worse."

"Everyone just calm down," Lily said. "Erza, sit. Carla… rest. I'll watch Wendy for an hour. If Gajeel hasn't shown up by then, I'll go look for him."

Carla's immediate response was a denial; she didn't get to voice it. A rattling tap on the door made them all jump. Erza turned, a sword in her hand in the same breath, and crossed the room. Happy beat her to the door, flying up and opening it to a familiar figure, narrow through the shoulders and hips, pink hair dirtier than Erza had ever seen it before.

Cheria was in the most ludicrous onesie, kittens smiling from every inch, perched on rainbows. It would have been cute, if it wasn't so torn and caked with filth. An overwhelming feeling filled Erza's chest, too complicated to name. Grabbing Cheria roughly, she tugged the girl in for a bone-crushing hug, then pushed her toward the cot Wendy lay upon without so much as a word of hello.

"Cheria." Carla sat up straight, life coming back into her eyes. "What—"

Erza spoke over the cat, directing her words solely to Cheria. "Wendy fell from a cliff—"

"Yes," Cheria said. "I know."

"I think she's in a coma. She hasn't woken since the fall. There's bruising, too, around her temple. It keeps spreading. I think there's a hemorrhage or something under—"

"Erza," Cheria said sharply. "Let me do what I do best." Erza quieted on principle. No one ever spoke to her in such a way. Satisfied, Cheria went to Wendy's bed and fell to her knees. The god slayer's magic was already thick in the air, plucking away at the worst of Wendy's injuries. Happy took up Carla's paw and waited more patiently than the rest of them. Lily opted for the less intrusive polishing of his sword, the rag significantly quieter than his whetstone. Erza changed her pacing to hovering.

It went on for moments until Cheria got exasperated. "Erza, please, I will work better if you're not hanging over my shoulder. Go for a walk or something."

Erza thrust her fingers through her hair, frustrated beyond belief. She wanted to _do_ something. There was validity in Cheria's words, though. "I won't be far if you need anything."

"I know," Cheria agreed.

Erza looked over her shoulder several times before she could bare to put the door between she and Wendy. She barely had time to look up from the door handle when hands grabbed her arms and pulled her in. Erza suppressed both a scream and a violent outburst, understanding at the last second what was happening. Jellal's oversized hood cast his face into such deep shadow that she couldn't see him to confirm that it was in fact his mouth against hers, but his taste was the same, and the feel of his calloused hands. The kiss ended as soon as it started and he was on the move, trekking down the hallway with purpose.

Erza didn't know if he was trying to slip away before he was caught or if he wanted her to follow, but _she_ knew which one she wanted. Long steps didn't help her catch up, but at least she was only a few paces behind when he took the stairs to the uppermost floor that existed solely for roof access. The door opened, letting in the night.

Next door, the Thorn and Thistle was rowdier than usual. Erza could barely focus on it, too strung out thinking about other things. Like the man before her slipping over the small portion of the roof that was flat and covered in gravel. An air conditioning fan sat in the center of the compact space, a perfect stool. She watched Jellal glance at it, then choose the tall brick chimney that abutted the second peaked roof instead. He was always more comfortable in the shadows. Looking for a corner swathed in impenetrable black was a habit she'd picked up from him as well.

Easing into him was comforting; it even worked to quiet her raging thoughts. She locked her arms around his neck and he responded by linking his around her waist. "Thank you for finding Cheria."

Without a responding word, he tugged down his cowl and kissed her in that _way_ he had. The way that made her head spin and her skin burn and her fingers tingle. In the way that made her responsibilities fall to the wayside. She fought against the urge tonight, though.

"Wendy—"

"Cheria's taking care of her," Jellal mumbled against her mouth.

"But no one's watching for attacks. What if—"

"Pantherlily is inside with them, and Crime Sorciere has the building surrounded. No one gets in and no one gets out without their knowledge. Wendy is safe." He kissed her again.

"I should be there with her."

"You've been with her for days," Jellal said. "You need time to rest." He lifted her hand and kissed her wrist.

A bit of fight went out of the redhead. "Resting generally means sleeping."

"Generally, but not always. There are other ways to renew yourself." His lips met hers again. "More enjoyable ways."

Erza closed her eyes, torn. Be selfish or responsible? _Cheria doesn't want you inside anyway…_ "It's really safe?"

"Yes."

Before he was finished speaking, she was trading armour for a soft pink dress. Through the fabric, she felt how warm Jellal's hands were. It had only been days since they'd last been together, but it felt like weeks. "I missed you." Part of her wished she didn't. That way she wouldn't worry every other day if he'd been arrested by the Magic Council. She wouldn't always wonder where he was. If he was safe. If he was looking up at the same stars she was, wondering the same things. Love was complicated and consuming, even when she knew she had other more important responsibilities to occupy her time. There was always a place for Jellal in her head and in her heart.

"I missed you, too." He kissed her until her lips were numb, then adjusted their positions so she was the one against the chimney, front flat to the bricks. He came in behind her, pressing into her body, unintentionally keeping her warm. His mouth moved over her jaw to her shoulder while his hands worked low, grasping her breasts and down between her legs. Erza couldn't contain her smile the moment Jellal realized she wore nothing beneath her dress, his grunt of excited approval travelling through her like lightning. He moved quickly after that, lifting her dress and groping her behind, then forcing her legs wider. Erza gave him what he wanted, spreading enough that he could reach between to her center. His hands were cold, his touch startling, but not in a bad way.

Skillful fingers alternating between rough and gentle strokes had defined this part of their relationship. It hadn't taken Jellal long to discover what Erza liked, however every opportunity he had he was experimenting with new tactics to make her shake and sob. Tonight he marked her neck with a bruise delivered with his mouth, the proof of their union all the more scandalous because Erza knew it was dangerous and damaging if anyone knew of their relationship.

It was exciting, the real and imaginary chains they wore. She closed her eyes and focused on that, relying upon it to help build the sensation low in her belly. It never took her long to orgasm when it was Jellal doing the ministrations. As always, it took her by force and left her a wet, stammering mess. her own voice drowning out those drifting from the Thorn and Thistle just steps away. By the time she was through, Jellal had his pants down, a condom on and was lifting both her dress and one of her legs. He slipped inside without trouble.

Erza didn't try to mask her moans, taking more and more enjoyment out of the blatant risk as the minutes ticked by and her cries got louder. The hand that wasn't holding her leg tangled in her hair and forced her cheek against the rough brick. Shivers darted beneath her skin. Some people way below laughed; she wondered if it was because they heard them or not. Just on the precipice of another orgasm, this one more powerful than before, Jellal slowed. Erza dug her fingers into the crumbling wall in protest. "Don't stop."

"If I don't slow down, I'm going to come," he hissed harshly.

A thrill moved through Erza, bringing her back to that steep ledge. "Don't stop."

Behind her, Jellal's breath came in a short puff. He tightened his hold on her leg and her hair so hard it hurt and slammed into her, making her scream. When she came so did he. Erza wanted his mouth on hers but had to settle for his less-than-romantic hold. There was no sweet talk or languid kisses. They very rarely got that opportunity.

Jellal came out of her, still mostly hard, and did a sloppy clean-up, dropping the condom to the roof and tucking himself into his pants as it was when he'd rather wash. Not every part of their relationship (hardly any, really) was idealistic in that sense. On the spot impromptu trysts were the best they had. It was more than enough.

Erza fixed her dress and her hair, then wrapped her arms around her body, cold. Jellal stepped back into her, adding body heat and his cloak to keep her protected from the wind. It was silly; they both knew with a thought she could be better dressed; it didn't matter. The closeness was what was important.

Erza reached between them and pushed Jellal's hair back from his forehead. "Will you leave again?"

"In a day or so. I want to meet up with one of our suppliers and get some more rations. I need to fix my cloak as well…" He held up the ruined piece of cloth for her inspection.

Erza felt the crusted blood, dried there for days. "What happened?"

"We were attacked on the way to Cheria. Richard was freed from his sins."

Erza searched his eyes, deciphering his meaning. "He was killed?"

"By a beast." Because nothing less could be so deadly and vicious.

"…I'm sorry, Jellal," she said first.

He tried to be pragmatic. "Death is something that awaits us all."

"But not everyone has to watch people they swore to redeem meet their end by murder."

Jellal looked away. "I would be lying if I said I was unbothered. There wasn't anything I could have done, though. Already if I had been a second slower, we all would have been dead. As it was, I almost lost my arm." He left out almost swaying into the canal to drown (Crime Sorciere would have pulled him from the waters, right? Or not…), figuring that and near-exsanguination were details she didn't need to hear.

Erza searched his eyes. "Was it the same thing that attacked my group?"

"I couldn't say for certain, when I was through, there wasn't much left to look at," Jellal admitted.

Erza pulled him closer again. "I'm glad you're safe." She remembered Lucy's state. "Lucy and Natsu were attacked today as well, by a demon. Lucy killed it."

"More demons?" Jellal asked.

Kyoka crawled into her mind, her touch, the pain, the humiliation. She shuddered involuntarily.

Jellal knew what she was thinking without her saying a word. He crushed their bodies together, like that would ward off the trauma's memory. Her arms came up to wrap around his shoulders, her cheek tucked into the hollow of his throat. He didn't bother telling her he'd protect her from any harm ever again, it was a useless proclamation that she would not appreciate, nor would it be true—he may try, but it seemed they were apart as much now as they were together-and Erza took great pride in fighting her own battles, never wanting to feel weak and helpless again.

"We'll be in the area a few days more. Meet me up here again, Erza, tomorrow, when the sun sets."

"Does this mean you're leaving?"

He kissed her forehead. "We've been out here for longer than you think. Your companions are likely wondering where you are by now."

Erza thought briefly of Gajeel and Levy. Surely they were back now. And aside from them... Wendy might be awake. She didn't like leaving Jellal but for that...

She kissed him thoroughly. "I'll be here at sun set."

* * *

Choppy movements roused Levy from a very dark place. Glued shut and heavy, her eyes had a hard time reconciling opening. A familiar voice hooked into them, though, and helped convince her that she should be tugging them high.

"What happened, Gajeel?"

… _Lisanna?_

"Levy and I were on our way to Porlyusica's cottage to get help for Wendy when we came across some broad pulling magic out of the earth."

A new voice spoke up, and there was only one thing it was interested in. "Help for Wendy? What do you mean?"

… _Mirajane?_

"She was attacked like we were," Gajeel responded. His voice rumbled against Levy's side. Her heart beat faster when she realized that he was carrying her. And then it beat faster because a scrap of memory returned to her: standing on top of the library, and then _not_. Freefalling, with only cracked concrete and rebar to break her fall. Down, down. And a globe of iron as protection. Everything else was hazy.

"You're lucky we saw the building collapse. Who knows how long you guys would have been trapped for if we hadn't?" Mirajane's voice came again.

"Do we know who this chick is?" And that was Bickslow.

"No idea," Gajeel responded. His arms constricted on Levy's body. "But when I find her, I'm not going to waste my breath asking. She's going down."

A voice that could only belong to Laxus asked, "What about the old man?"

"Makarov?" Gajeel clarified. "Haven't heard a thing."

"We'll find him, Laxus." Levy got her eyes open in time to see Mirajane touch Laxus' arm gently, consoling him. He inched out of her grasp, severe face pinching more. He didn't bother responding. Mira looked away from him and found Levy. Her mouth curled into a smile when she saw Levy was awake. "Hey, Levy."

Around her body, Lisanna mimicked her sister's greeting with a wide and infectious grin.

Levy found some saliva to make her tongue work. "Mira…" The takeover mage looked the same as ever, though a year had passed: wide eyes, red mouth good for smiling, and hair so silver it was white. The only thing different was the weight of worry she seemed to carry with her—Levy pinpointed the source to the second generation dragon slayer at her side. Laxus was brooding enough for the lot of them.

"How are you feeling?" Mira asked. "You fell a few storeys."

"…Like I fell a few storeys," Levy said. Her elbow ached and her forehead felt damp and sore when she squished her brows together.

Gajeel was all business. "Get the door."

Levy looked away from the group to survey the grounds. They'd walked through Magnolia's streets back to Briar's Lock. Next door was the Thorn and Thistle, the lights from inside bleeding out onto the litter-filled streets. It was as raucous and filthy as ever in there. Through dingy windows, Levy saw that the wood floors were slick with beer and sometimes worse things.

Freed held the door, ushering them in, and Levy's view was blocked. At the front desk was a plump lady with ruddy cheeks and limp mouse-brown hair. "More Fairy Tail members?" she asked in a nasally voice.

"Yes," Mira said. She looked around, doing a quick count. "We're going to need six rooms."

Levy checked her calculation and saw she was wrong. Gajeel spoke, though, side tracking Levy's correction. "And we need to know which room Erza Scarlet checked into." He shuffled Levy's weight and dug out some cash to pay. The others followed suit.

"Your friend is in thirty-three," the clerk responded as she reached beneath the desk for room keys.

Laxus asked, "What about Makarov Dreyar? You got him staying here, too?"

"Who?" the woman asked.

Laxus' jaw bounced. "The master of Fairy Tail. Old guy. Short. Grey."

"There isn't anyone staying here matching that description. At least, not that I know of." She moved on without remorse. "Room numbers are on the keys. Don't wreck anything, or you'll be paying for it."

"Yeah." Gajeel took a key at random and took off, not waiting for anyone else.

The stairs were only dully illuminated, the pot lights along the walls turned way down for the night, just barely bright enough for Levy to see the stained bare plywood and the peeling paint on the wall. Briar's Lock had only gotten worse over the last year.

With every stair Gajeel took, Levy felt more awkward. "I can probably walk."

"You hurt your leg."

Levy looked down and saw it was gashed open, bleeding but not hurting. She didn't bother correcting him; he looked to be in no mood for arguments.

"Thirty-three?" Mira asked from a few steps behind.

"Yes," Levy replied. The floor evened out, the hallway stretching on either side of the stairs. Up here it smelled pungently of drugs and alcohol and unwashed clothes. Humans. It was gross.

"I'm going to drop our stuff off, then we'll be over," Mira announced before Gajeel could get too far away. To Laxus and his group she asked, "Are you guys coming?"

Laxus wavered then shook his head. "Nah. We'll catch up in the morning."

"Tomorrow I'll help you find Master," Levy heard Mira say quietly. "Just because he isn't here doesn't mean—"

"Goodnight, Mira." Laxus pushed past Gajeel and Levy without hearing the rest of her words, making for a room down the hall. The door opened not without some handle-shaking and swears, stuck. It snapped closed with finality, jarring Gajeel into motion again.

"Well, I'm in," Bickslow said. Evergreen and Freed mimicked his words. Levy smiled into Gajeel's chest. She'd missed Fairy Tail.

* * *

The anxiety Erza felt opening the door to her room was distracting. Jellal's kiss was still on her neck, pulsing, her hair was askew she was sure, and Jellal was right, they'd been gone for a long time.

However, the anxiety took a back seat when she heard Gajeel's voice. They'd returned.

All eyes turned to her when she came in. Carla's were drawn right to Erza's neck, focusing on the hickey like it was a beacon. Suddenly, Erza wished she had found a turtleneck, or some makeup because it was still too warm for that kind of garb. The cat opened her mouth to ask a question (what happened?). Erza talked over her. "How is Wendy?"

The small dragon slayer was still on the bed, eyes closed. She had a little more colour now, which was relieving, but she wasn't awake.

"She's stable," Cheria said from her perch next to Levy on the edge of the mattress. "She'll likely sleep more, this kind of thing would be hard on her body, but by tomorrow... hopefully she'll be awake."

Relief hit Erza like a ton of bricks. "Thank you, Cheria." She directed her next question at Gajeel. "Where have you been?"

It was Levy, hands locked in Cheria's, that answered. "We were attacked on our way to see Porlyusica, by a woman with a staff. We were buried beneath some rubble until the Strauss' and the Thunder Legion showed up and dug us out."

Erza finally realized that the two were covered in dust and blood, though it seemed Cheria had tended to most of their injuries. She chewed over that for a moment. "What is going on here?"

"Obviously someone doesn't want us in Magnolia," Gajeel said.

"Obviously," Levy replied dryly.

Cheria released Levy's hands. "You're done."

Levy touched her forehead, fingers sliding through blood to verify that there was no pain. The skin beneath was completely healed. "Thank you. All of us would be in big trouble if you hadn't shown up. How did you know where to find us?"

Erza's heart leapt into her throat as Cheria started to tell her tale—the tale Erza was sure involved Crime Sorciere. Thinking only of keeping Jellal safe, she cut Cheria off. "She and Wendy spend a lot of time together now. Wendy told me you were planning on meeting up, right?"

"...Yeah," Cheria agreed after a brief stunned silence. Her acting was less than passable. Erza couldn't keep the glower off her face.

Levy raised a dark brow, not ignorant to Erza's edginess.

"Well... We're glad to have you around," Lily said. "I'm sure Wendy will be, too, when she wakes."

The door sounded. "That'll be Mira and the others," Levy announced.

Erza seized the distraction, hoping that the added presence would keep Cheria from spilling how she got to Magnolia.

* * *

For two days a heavy feeling had been piggybacking on Laxus' shoulders. There was no explanation nor was there any escape from it. He thought sleeping would help. When that escape proved itself to be elusive, he drank until his head was fuzzy, his muscles were loose and he felt slow.

Falling into an uncomfortable bed without someone to warm the other side wasn't exactly ideal—he'd gotten used to the women, the ones that were eager to spend time with Blue Pegasus' newest recruits—but he just didn't have the energy to wander over to the Thistle and pick out the least scuzzy bar rat. And then there was Mira's disapproving frown—that killed his libido faster than he could get it going. He shoved the takeover mage from his mind, knowing _that_ thought path was just going to lead to annoyance.

There was a lot of ceiling staring and thought avoidance. Hours of it. Eventually a restless sleep came to him. Not that it lasted long, interrupted as it was by a light flickering in the distance. It only grew in brightness, to the point where he squinted, the dingy window doing nothing to block out the blaze.

 _What…?_

 _Fire_ , he determined. The covers were off his body and he was across the room, standing at the window when his door opened and Bickslow came in, unapologetic for the intrusion.

"Someone's set fire to the old guild hall."

"Someone… what?"

"I was outside for a dart when I heard the guards talking." Bickslow looked uncomfortable.

"Asshole kids?" Laxus determined.

Bickslow's discomfort only grew. "Don't think so, boss. They—ah—"

There was a bad feeling in Laxus' chest that only grew. "What is it?"

Bickslow swiped his hand over his face. "If the guards are right? …They said an old man was staked out front."

 _Alive or dead?_ There wasn't enough bravery in the world to ask that question. Laxus had his jeans pulled over his shorts and a loose fitting sweater tugged on in record time. He wished he could lag; it would give him time to settle the curdled feeling in his stomach. As it were, he could only lumber along and wish he hadn't drank so much earlier.


	22. Chapter 22

Whisky was never kind to Gray. He drank it anyway, sometimes because it was the favorite of whoever he was drinking with—before the guild broke up that meant Loke—and sometimes because that seemed to be the only thing on the menu. Probably because everything else worth drinking had already been drunk.

The Thorn and Thistle only ever had a few kinds of alcohol anyway. Cheap beer, tequila potent enough that no amount of limes could block out the taste, and swill whisky. He had a bottle of the latter, swindled out of the bartender by a winning smile. She didn't even stare at him, afraid of the black stain on his skin. Imagine that. Mostly because, for at least a little while, killing that demon had satiated something in his heart and his father's mark retreated to a more manageable size.

He cherished the relief while he had it, because it wouldn't be long before it started to spread again. That being said, he almost missed the arctic feeling while it was gone. Just because it was familiar. _Don't rush it_. He could sit at the bar without enticing any questions. Not that he could figure out why he wanted to do that in the first place.

Maybe just to fuck with himself. He could hear Juvia's sloppy laughter and kept replaying the last time she'd dared to get drunk with him. Raucous didn't even begin to explain how she'd been that night. She'd never been sluttier and he'd never loved her more for it. _Was she like that because it was with you? Or just because_? It was easy to imagine her acting that way with Smile-Too-Fucking-Much-Riley because he kept bringing her drinks, she kept knocking them back, and his hands kept sliding every fucking place they shouldn't be.

Gray realized his magic was trying to slip out of his hold. He breathed deeply and took a huge swallow straight from the whisky bottle, forgoing the shot glass before him.

 _How long are you going to sit here for? Long enough to watch that guy take Juvia upstairs_? It looked like that wasn't far off. _Just get up and go back to Briar's_. And then what? Wander through the halls? Find Lucy again and really throw some nails in the coffin just to be spiteful? It didn't need it; he was already suffocating inside that pine box.

Those thoughts were more than enough to make him think that his night should be over. He took another gulp of whisky. It curdled in his empty stomach. He was too drunk. Not drunk enough. He looked at Juvia's table one more time and really wished he hadn't. He wouldn't have seen the other man lean in and kiss her. Gray stood so abruptly that his stool fell over. Someone cussed behind him. He barely heard, torn between doing the mature thing and walking out of there or finding out how much abuse his knuckles could take before they cracked open. It was a deadlock. Juvia stood, as did Riley, and Gray only seemed more paralyzed. He watched them, helpless to do much else. Together they walked, feet bringing them toward the upper apartments. The ice mage held his breath, unsure of what he'd do if she walked up those stairs. Nothing? Stop her?

Gray didn't have to find out. Riley went toward the washroom and Juvia came toward the bar. The relief he felt was almost totally washed away by the nervousness and the anger. He knew why he felt one, but not the other. Juvia never made him nervous. Yet, as she approached the bar, overhead lights bouncing off those tall black boots, her skin, her sapphire hair, his heart sped. Her dress was askew, pawed at, and her lips were red with someone else's kiss. She was a beautiful fucking mess.

Like always, her eyes were drawn to him. Like she just couldn't help it. Several emotions flitted across her face: surprise, eagerness, fear.

Gray held on to the last two, the first because it gave him hope, the second because he just couldn't seem to help it. He waited for her to come to him, and come she did. He was the north her compass needle would always tug her toward. The guilt that left him with was both liberating and poisoning. Sometimes he wished he and Juvia weren't destined to play this game. _I want you. It's too toxic._ They'd separate then they'd go around again. This revolution was rougher than all of the others had ever been. Mostly because he'd allowed himself to grab the reins.

Looking like a wraith, silvery and white and blue, Juvia slipped into a narrow space beside him and engaged the bartender. "Two tequilas, please." The man nodded and started working on her order.

"You don't drink tequila." Gray was close enough to smell her. The shampoo she'd been using here at the Thistle was different than her usual. This one smelled like coconut. It drove him insane. It didn't _smell_ like Juvia.

"I never used to. Things change." She barely looked at him. It was a tactic to get under his skin, he knew, and it was fucking working.

The tequila came. Before Juvia could grab them and slip away, Gray took the one that was meant for someone else and shot it. Juvia pursed her lips in annoyance, finally looking at him. She was all disapproval. "That was for Riley."

"It doesn't have to be."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He hadn't planned on saying it, but now that it was done, he figured he might as well finish digging that grave. "Stay here and drink with me, Juvia."

Another string of emotions took her. Some he relished, others let him know in no uncertain terms that trouble was coming. "Is that the line you used—"

He shut her down. "No. And it's not a line." It totally was, they both knew it. They both knew that she was warring viciously with herself, too. Good.

"You're drunk already. You don't need me to help you."

He crossed his arms over his chest. "Like you're not?"

"Sure, but every time I see you now, you're drunk," she told him.

Gray was going to deny it, but it'd been a while since he'd been really sober. "Forget about drinking." He didn't need any more anyway, not unless he wanted to spend the night with his head in the toilet. He'd had enough of that after yesterday. "I wanted to talk to you about some stuff."

"I told you before, I don't want to hear it," Juvia said. Her voice belied her resolve. Her resistance was eroding faster than she could form it. No, they couldn't help but be pulled together.

"And if I said it was about other stuff?"

She looked at him warily. "What other stuff?"

Gray stepped a little closer to her, pressing her boundaries; he just couldn't help it. This close, he could see how bottomless her eyes were, how completely blue. "Can we find somewhere private?"

Juvia faltered. "Gray..."

"Come on, Juvia. When Erza showed up she told me some news, that's all. We could talk here, but..." He looked around the bar. Riley was still somewhere else; probably not for much longer. Gray got as serious as he could when he was spinning so badly. "It's pretty important, and I think it should be something we talk about privately."

Just like that, she buckled. "This way." She started walking. Gray caught up, blood pumping when he realized she was leading him up the stairs to her room. All noise but the band playing on the bar's stage fell into dullness, becoming more obscure as they mounted the stairs, which meant more room for the blood singing in his ears to be heard. Juvia didn't look at him. She didn't need to; Gray knew he was the only thing truly on her mind.

The upper level smelled as rank as ever, like stale cigarettes and old booze. It was a smell that Gray hated as much as he liked. It reminded him of Fairy Tail. It reminded him of raucous nights. And now it reminded him of Juvia.

At her door, Juvia missed getting the key into the lock twice. The third time was the charm. She hesitated before she opened the door, though. "I'm only bringing you up here to talk."

Gray leaned against the wall to search her eyes. He didn't need a translator to tell him she was mostly fortifying herself. "Yeah."

Juvia looked at him fleetingly. "I mean it, Gray-sama."

Though it was serious, he couldn't help but say, "If you did, you'd stop calling me that."

Juvia faltered; her cheeks went red. "It's just…"

Gray watched her wet her lips. Lips with someone else's kiss on them. He wanted to fix that. Restraint was a thing he used to have in droves. Things changed. It was different when he didn't know what he was giving up. He could play along, though. Until he couldn't anymore. "I'm kidding. Open the door. We're just going to talk."

Movement helped stave off Juvia's embarrassment. She slithered into her room and closed the door behind Gray, blocking out the dull hallway light so all they had was the ashy moonlight. The girl went for the lamp. It felt wrong to have it on. Gray grabbed her hand and stopped her.

"What are you doing?"

"I like this." Just barely illuminated by the moon was how he liked to see Juvia best. Lying naked in bed, leaning over her body and brushing his fingers over her skin to watch it raise in goose bumps, pale and perfect... those memories were engrained in his mind; he'd do almost anything to dredge them up to the surface. It helped him believe that he and Juvia weren't so far away from being in that place again.

Juvia's arms fell back to her side and they remained in the dark. Gray took that as a step gained in the right direction and got a little closer to her. She put on her best unyielding face and said, "You wanted to talk. Talk. What's going on with Erza?"

Reality was a mood killer. Gray straightened from _whateverthehell_ he was trying to do and scrubbed his numb face. "Yeah. She was attacked on her way to Magnolia."

Juvia's weight went on to one hip and her fingers tugged at the hem of her dress. "That's not so unusual. Erza attracts trouble everywhere—"

"They were attacked by a demon and Wendy was nearly killed. She's been in a coma since." Juvia took a breath in the appropriate place. Gray kept talking so she couldn't ask any questions yet. "The same demon attacked Gajeel and Levy just moments before, according to them, and nearly took them out, too."

"That's terrible."

"And then there are those girls that were killed." Bringing up Lucy seemed foolhardy when he had Juvia alone, and they had some sort of dialog, but it could hardly be avoided. "I know it seemed they were targeting girls that looked like Lucy, but... I'm worried about you."

More complicated emotions flitted across Juvia's face. "You are?"

"Yes. You know there was a demon right here in the Thistle tonight, hanging out at your table?"

"My table?" She seemed genuinely surprised.

"Yeah. Chick with pink hair. Did you know her? Or was she one of the guard's friends?"

Juvia looked at him blankly. "I don't know."

Not that it mattered much anyway. Not now. "I took care of it so you don't have to worry, but the point is, you need to be careful. Who knows what would have happened if I wasn't there?" He liked to think he was the only one that could protect Juvia. He liked her to think that, too. If she would.

Juvia blinked and blinked. "You killed it?"

"I had to. It was going to try to do the same to me." There was no guilt, only the want to do it again and again. "I think I've been feeling that thing lurking around here for days, Juvia. The headaches, the irritation." _The sickness._ Never mind that it hadn't gone away, just dulled significantly with that demon's last breath. "The point is..." What was the point? As soon as he realized it, he knew he was setting himself up for a one percent success rate. He just couldn't seem to stop. "You shouldn't be here by yourself."

She fidgeted. "I'm not."

Of course not. She had _Riley_ and her new friend. What the fuck was her name? Irena? Ireen? _Eileen._ That was it. He hated that name almost as much as _Riley._ Irrational didn't even begin to cover it. He spat out his words before he could get sidetracked. "Come back with me. To our room. And stay again."

"Gray..."

He waited for _sama_ but she'd finally seemed to find some reserve. Just in time for him to completely misplace his. Her hand was in his, his fingers twisting around the ring on her finger. "Please, Juvia. I'll keep you safe."

She shivered and Gray realized that his father's mark was getting cold, on the move again, as was his headache. "There are more demons in Magnolia. I'm sure of it, and they're going to be looking for anyone affiliating themselves with the Fairy Tail guild."

She gathered up the inside of her cheek and chewed it. "I don't want to stay with you."

That hurt like a punch to the throat. "Why?"

"Because, you'll just tell me how sorry you are and you'll make up excuses and I'll want to listen because that—that's what I do." Being drunk made her brave.

"How can they be excuses if they're true?" Gray asked exasperatedly.

"See?" She threw her hands into the air. "This is what I'm talking about! And then I just want to listen to your lies. I can't, Gray."

"Maybe you want to listen because I'm not lying."

She poked him in the chest. "You lie all the time!"

"All the time?" He checked his voice, realizing that they were getting back into the swing of a yelling match. He moved in close and cupped her cheeks between his palms. With her eyes locked on his he said quietly, "I only ever lied about one thing and I did that because I fucked up, Juvia. What we had was good. I liked it. I didn't want it to be ruined. Haven't you ever just... lied to keep something, even though you knew it was wrong?"

"No." Of course not. She was better than that. _Better than you_. Knowing it was true didn't stop him from trying. It was that fucking merry-go-round all over again. Everything always seemed to be in a state of irritated movement. There was no stopping it.

"Well..."

She grabbed his wrists and squeezed. "If you had just told me about Lucy I could have forgiven you."

He searched her eyes. "I couldn't see you ever doing that."

"That's because you're stupid. I would because I love you, Gray-sama." There it was. "You couldn't see that before and I think you still can't now. And if that's the case... you didn't trust me. And if you didn't trust me then it's as I said. You really didn't ever love me." She started to straighten. Gray pulled her in closer, wrapping his arms around her shoulders to prevent her slipping away so easily.

"You know that's not true."

"Please let me go."

That killed him. "No. Not until you see I'm telling the truth."

She poked him again, more irritated. "You need to start _seeing_ the truth if you actually believe that."

"What can I do to prove it to you, huh?" Gray asked, feeling suddenly manic.

Juvia faltered. "Nothing."

"No. There has to be something." He dug through his head thinking of all the stupid things that people did to prove they loved each other. Got rings and a useless piece of paper signed by some generic priest. Maybe it'd make Juvia happy, but it seemed hollow. Had a screaming child show them just how little adding another life to their problems fixed everything? Not fucking happening. Bang his head against a wall chanting ' _I'm sorry, I messed up_ ,' until he was brainless? He felt like he was already there, actually. "I'm going to think of a way, Juvia."

She searched his eyes and believed him. Her heart swelled. She loved him, she couldn't help it.

"In the meantime, come back to Briar's Lock with me. You'll be safer there," Gray added, though he hardly felt sober enough to save her from much of anything at this very moment. _Just push a little more._ She'd say yes. Juvia always said yes to him.

"I..."

He tangled his fingers in her hair. "Just come with me." He wanted to kiss her so badly.

"If I come back with you, you'll think this is okay," Juvia said eventually. "I'm fine here."

"No, you're not. You're downstairs getting wasted and felt up by some loser—"

She pulled back and said in a quiet voice, "I hope that's not what all this is about."

The scowl Gray didn't know he was wearing deepened. "I'm..." unused to telling her how he felt; Juvia was generally vocal enough for the both of them. "Worried about you. Yeah, about this crap you're getting yourself into, but also because of what I told you. Magnolia's playing host to demons; I'm sure of it." Why was she being so stubborn?

Juvia was still stuck on his first reason. "This crap?"

Gray thought speaking was inviting disaster; he continued anyway. "Staying up late, drinking with strangers, getting them to come up to your room?" With every word he felt a little angrier but did what he could to keep it under wraps.

Juvia's cheeks were red even in the pale light. "It's none of your business if I want to have a good time."

"It's not you, Juvia. You're upset about what happened and this is how you're dealing with it." Like he was one to talk, wasted like he was, but hell. No one wanted to get him hammered and take advantage of him. That was his game.

She got mad. "Gray—"

He squeezed her shoulders. " _It's not you_."

It wasn't. She knew it. She was quiet for a long time.

"Just come back with me. I'll let you sleep on the bed, I'll crash on the floor. I'll keep my hands to myself and my mouth closed if you don't want to talk. _Just come with me_." It seemed imperative that she listen. "Didn't you hear me when I said Wendy was almost killed? She's been unconscious for days. Someone is targeting us. This is the best move. The smartest."

"Do you really believe that we're being targeted?"

"Yes. It's not safe to be by yourself."

Juvia's stubbornness fell away. "Let me go back downstairs and talk to Riley so he doesn't think I've disappeared—and then…"

Off the cuff, Gray said, "Who gives a fuck about him? Just grab your stuff and let's go."

She pursed her lips. "I do, because we were talking about going to the pier."

There were several mean things fighting to get out of his mouth. Smothering them would only work for so long. "Forget about that guy, Juvia."

"Excuse me." Like a worm she slipped from his grasp and was out of the door faster than Gray could protest. He followed hot on her heels, unsure if he closed her door or not, and not really caring. She was quicker than he was, perhaps because she wasn't nearly as drunk. With little effort, there was a lot of distance put between them. By the time he got to the final step, he'd caught sight of her sapphire hair swirling around her shoulders as she ducked into the ladies' room. He was going to follow her in when a brunette shuffled out in a hurry, giving him a peculiar look on the way. Gray realized at the last second what he was trying to do and backed off. Juvia had to come out this way anyway. And he'd as good as got her agreeance. She was going to come back. And if she wanted to be moody and disagreeable. Well... that was okay. As long as she was there to be such.

* * *

With a numb head and a confused heart, Juvia shoved her way into the crowded bathroom and ducked into one of the graffitied stalls. The door was troublesome, the lock unwilling to slide over without a lot of jostling and some muttered curses. Finally, it worked. She peed, hiking up her skirt in a less than dignified way, and bending at the waist. Beneath her feet were bits of toilet paper, a corner of a condom wrapper, a tube of lipstick some drunk girl dropped and left there, a sacrifice to all the gross things in the Thistle's bathroom. Juvia sat there for a moment, studying the ground, thinking. It was a less than conventional place for deep contemplation, but at least no one bothered her in there.

She didn't question if she was going to go with Gray. That was obvious. She knew herself too well to pretend otherwise. The question was, would she let him tell more stories and whittle her down or would she be able to keep up this barrier she'd been able to erect? It was full of holes and crumbling, its state getting worse every time Gray came at her with the _'I love you's'_ and the ' _please's_ '.

 _Just remember you're only going because things are getting dangerous_. _Not because you want him to tell you everything you wanted to hear again and again. Not because you want him to kiss you. Not because you want things to go back to the way they were before._

She cleaned herself up and stood, fixing her dress, taking extra care with her appearance, not that she'd entertain _why_. The sound of the toilet flushing was the only one in the washroom, yet when she came out, she wasn't alone. Sprawled on the bathroom counter, back against the wall, legs up on the countertop, was a woman with sharp black eyes and pink hair. Her black painted mouth tugged into a smile. "Hi."

Tumblers fell into place and Juvia pulled Akio's name and face from the deepest dregs of her cobwebby and hole-riddled memory. "...Hi." Gray's words niggled in the back of her mind. _Pink haired demon. That he said he killed_. The woman before her was very much alive. It was easy to believe Akio was less than human, though. No person ever looked so... sharp.

She lifted her hand and beckoned Juvia forward with a fine pointed nail that was more of a claw. "Come here, slayer's slut."

Fear stirred in Juvia's chest. Muted, but there. "No..."

Akio shimmied from the countertop, the black tights she wore stretching and hugging her body with every movement. "Then I will come to you."

Juvia's feet were two pieces of immovable concrete. Her heart sped. "Excuse me. Gray-sama is waiting for me—"

"He's busy, I believe."

Juvia blinked; suddenly Akio was close enough that she could close her fingers around Juvia's neck. The water mage expected the contact to spurn her into some action; it only seemed to further paralyze her. The woman brought her face in close enough that she could whisper in Juvia's ear. "You lied to me, Juvia."

Juvia's muscles quivered. "What?"

"Yes. You told me you gave _Gray-sama_ that little stone like Lady Eileen asked. Remember?"

Of course. "I—I did. He took it and it helped his magic."

She sneered. "If that's the case, then why doesn't he carry it?"

"I don't know."

Akio pressed between Juvia's breasts and pushed her backward until Juvia's back was against the stall. "Lady Eileen is going to be furious with me, Juvia. She gave me a task and I've been unable to complete it because of you. She'll be returning shortly and Gray Fullbuster is still very much a devil slayer. Which means punishment for me. Which means punishment for _you."_ Her face changed as she spoke, pale human skin getting perforated by scales. Her eyes lost all of their luster. "I'm going to ruin everything good about you."

Juvia's adrenaline spiked. "Get away from me."

"No."

 _Then you get away from her._ Juvia's legs obeyed when she asked them to move, however, Akio fisted her clawed hands in Juvia's dress, tearing it, and forced her back against the stall so hard that the steel frame bent. Juvia's head cracked back, dazing her.

"I said _no._ " Akio tore her dress more, splitting it down the middle so much so that Juvia's breasts spilled out, covered now only by her white lace bra. That too was grabbed and pulled so tight the elastic band threatened to snap. Some of the daze faded as Juvia came to terms with her situation. She blinked off what was sure to be a wicked concussion as best she could and summoned her magic. The water just barely came out of her fingers when Akio grabbed Juvia by the hair and cracked her head again against the metal stall. Hot blood leaked freely down into Juvia's collar, staining her white dress red. Spots appeared in front of her eyes. Her muscles loosened despite her insistence that they obeyed. Her magic fell to the wayside, forgotten.

Akio grabbed her roughly, squeezing her breasts so hard that it hurt and Juvia cried out. The woman smiled, taking obvious pleasure in the coming events. "Good girl. Good slut." Akio brought her mouth to Juvia's neck. " _Gray-sama_ isn't going to want to touch you when I'm through. I'll wreck everything he loves before I kill him. Just looking at you will make him sick. If you make it that far, of course. Sometimes I just can't stop." The first time her lips met Juvia's skin was to deliver a kiss, gentler than any Juvia had received before. The next was a little rougher, mouth pressing in, breath a bit more frantic as though she were losing control with every second contact was maintained. Her hands wandered, releasing Juvia's breasts so she could slip up her skirt. The water mage summoned her will to fight and pushed at Akio's hands.

"Stop it—"

Akio sank her teeth into Juvia's shoulder, changing her words into a scream as the skin easily broke and something passed from Akio's teeth into Juvia's body, making the area burn and burn, then numb. Juvia was so focused on the new pain, she almost didn't notice when Akio's hands tore through her dress, slitting it so her white panties were exposed now.

 _Don't just stand there letting this happen._

"No!" Juvia writhed only to receive claws in her hips. Pain made her stop. Her head. Her skin. Her shoulder. Akio took advantage of her immobility, grabbing all the places Juvia didn't want to be touched.

It took too long for Juvia to realize that she was in serious trouble. "Help!"

Akio stopped mauling her to force her forearm against her throat, shortening Juvia's words. "That's not how this game is played."

 _Game._ It was so perverse, Juvia almost laughed. Then she almost cried. She channeled fear and confusion into something _useful_ and pushed Akio with all her might. She gained an inch of space between them. Enough to call again. "Help me!" There had to be someone. Gray was _just_ behind her. He couldn't have gone far. And all the girls that had been in the washroom. Where was everyone?

"What did I say?" Akio slammed her back against the stall again. Juvia's muscles went limp as if they were atrophying. Her shoulder burned; in fact, it was a sensation that was traveling to her whole body. Fingers slipped between her legs, sliding up her thigh. Akio bit her again over her right breast. Not enough to puncture the skin, but almost.

 _No._ She didn't feel like she could do anything, and the less she felt capable, the less capable she became. Hopelessness was looming when the air swirled over Akio's shoulder. The room got dark as a portal opened and Eileen stepped out.

Juvia broke out in tears upon seeing the other woman. "Eileen! Help! Help me, please!" She reached and reached.

Hearing the name, feeling her presence, Akio stilled, Juvia's panties pinched between her fingers, pulled taut enough that the material frayed. "Lady Eileen… I wasn't expecting you."

Eileen raised a red brow. "I find that hard to believe. Even a parasite like you knows when their laziness, ineptitude and general deplorableness has crossed into the realms of useless."

Akio kept looking at Juvia. "Useless? I've served Master well."

"I disagree. You haven't completed _one_ task that I've set up for you. You'd rather sit in filthy bathrooms deflecting your punishment." Using her staff, Eileen pushed Akio away from Juvia. Without the demon's force keeping her upright, Juvia slumped to the ground, legs going out beneath her. She looked up at the redheaded newcomer. She wanted to say things—ask questions; her tongue was going numb.

Akio finally turned. "That's not true! You said to give him the stone and I did. It's not my fault his filthy slut was incapable of making him promise to hold it! You see, I was punishing her for her failure."

Eileen's expression got very tight and very, very wrathful. Her staff came up mercilessly and cracked Akio's temple. There was a flash of red blood, a muted scream, and then Akio disappeared, totally gone from the Thistle's bathroom. Silence ruled. Mostly. Beyond Eileen, it sounded like the bar was turning itself inside out. Glass broke somewhere far away. _A fight._ A vicious one, too, by the sounds of it.

Juvia pressed her palm into the dirty bathroom floor. "What—"

"You shouldn't move, Juvia," Eileen said. "Akio's venom is very potent. Sometimes it passes, sometimes her victims succumb to it. Staying still will give your body time to process it so it's not such a hard shock to your system. "

Juvia licked her paper dry lips. "I'm going to die?" She thought she should feel more panic. She was all detachment. Cold.

"Oh... I don't know. That is a terrible way to go, isn't it? I'm sorry that happened. Akio was right, though. Maybe if you did what I asked of you, we wouldn't be here now."

Juvia took in a breath that wheezed all the way into her lungs. "What?"

Eileen crouched and touched Juvia's blood soaked shoulder. It hurt more potently than anything else Juvia ever experienced. "Explain to me what happened when you gave that stone to Gray? Was he not thankful for a solution?"

Juvia rooted through her dusty thoughts. Her panic was receding and she wasn't sure if it was because Akio was gone and she was starting to relax again, or if that venom was having its way with her, or if there was some other cause. Like the too-beautiful woman before her. Whatever the reason, it didn't make thinking any easier. "He was… wary. But his father's magic scares him, I think. He—he took the stone. And—told me he'd keep it."

Eileen pursed her lips. "Lucky for you I believe you. The fact still remains that he hasn't, and it's very, very important that he does."

 _Very._ "Why?"

"So he never hurts the people he loves." Her words were less than genuine; Juvia still believed her.

"For now, I think it's best if you just sleep that venom off," Eileen said. "Close your eyes, Juvia. When you wake, I want you to do everything you can to convince your Gray-sama to keep that stone. I'll give you all the help I can manage, alright?"

 _Alright?_

"And don't be frightened anymore. I will deal with Akio properly and make sure she keeps her hands to herself." Eileen smiled; it was colder than a January day.

"Please. I don't want to hurt Gray-sama." _And I don't want to be hurt._

Eileen petted Juvia's tangled hair. Magic passed from her fingers into Juvia's body, alleviating some of her discomfort. "You won't."

Juvia wanted to believe her so badly. And so she did.

Eileen stood and unclipped her cloak from around her throat and tucked it around Juvia's body. "His Majesty is going to think that I've gone kind. I like to think that I just have higher standards than his creations. You know, each is a little more perverse than the last? You're lucky I stepped in. Akio is probably his worst."

 _Slayer's slut. Slut. Slut. Slut._

Juvia's body convulsed.

"I gain no pleasure in humiliating them in the particular way she does. I like to live by the philosophy that you should reward a dog for her loyalty." She tapped Juvia's cheek too hard.

Juvia had no words; blackness closed around her vision, blocking Eileen from view.

* * *

Getting caught in a vicious bar fight, trapped beneath a fat man whose ass rank like mildew and sweat was _not_ how Gray foresaw his night ending. Not at all. In fact, despite his assurances to Juvia, he planned on being in his bed with Juvia's wrath satiated and her warm body curled into his. That's all. Instead, as he waited for the water mage to step out of the washroom, a booming voice rocketed through the bar, calling his attention just in time for him to duck a flying chair.

It wasn't aimed at him. Nor was the one after. He just happened to be in the way. The second one caught him unawares. Stumbling back into the stage, he inadvertently tore down the speaker and launched it into a group of men trading white pills he'd bet weren't aspirin. The drugs went everywhere. People scrabbled. The music cut out. And then the fists started to fly. First it was just the men who had lost money in their deal. Then fight-fever spread to the surrounding areas. Soon the whole bar was rioting. It never took much in the Thistle.

Dodging fists and doling out the punches was easy at first. Drunk was on his side. If he missed catching a blow, well… he barely felt it anyway. People lost their individuality; Gray only saw them as faceless attackers. Generally, the men aimed for the ribs or the kidneys. There was at least _some_ code to the fights. Most people had to go to work the next morning. It was a bad play to show up with a broken nose or a black eye. There were the few, though, that cared not at all. They were the ones that were genuinely angry and not just looking to throw down. Gray knew them because they targeted him solely, surging forward in groups of two or three. It didn't seem to matter how many he pushed back; there were always more. His knuckles busted open. So did his cheek. That one hurt. Someone got him in the ribs. And the lowest blow, in the balls while he was dodging another swing at his face. The fall to the sloppy ground wasn't as far as he would have thought. It smelled down there. A scent that only got worse with the entry of the fat man.

Where he came from, Gray didn't know, he just appeared as if he could have hidden amongst all these people. As graceless as a walrus, he tripped over Gray's body and then he was falling, falling. Horror didn't even _begin_ to cover how Gray felt. There was nothing he could do. The air burst from his lungs; his alcohol was almost forced back up. The mildew and sweat scent was in his nose, though _how_ he didn't know. It felt like his lungs would never inflate again.

And then the man was gone, the momentum he'd gathered during the trip taking him away. Gray gasped for breath and wished he didn't. His attention would better be directed at blocking the kick aimed at his ribs, or rolling away from the stomping feet.

He had better luck getting to his knees. For a bit, anyway. As soon as he was up sort of in eye level again, the men came after him. Two of them grabbed him by the shoulders and hauled him up while a third approached, fists raised. Gray snarled and let his magic come, freezing the men that dared touch him. The third faltered.

The fourth standing behind Gray did _not._ A stolen billy club collided hard with his head and brought with it a hazy field of black. His magic went away; his legs gave out and he was back on the floor again.

There was no way to tell how long he lay there, mostly unconscious. There didn't seem to be any change in the bar. People were still yelling. Things were still breaking. Blearily, Gray saw a man steps away be picked up by the collar of his shirt and hauled through the bar. Moments later, he received the same treatment. People jostled him. Gray tried to get his feet beneath his body. No luck. Nothing was cooperating.

The squeal of the exit door was unmistakable, the metal handle needing to be greased more than just a little.

A voice he didn't know said, "Stay out. No one needs trash like you starting shit and wrecking their business, got that?"

Gray didn't have any hope of responding. He fell to the ground, the wind getting knocked out of him once more. He lay there amongst all of the detritus and spilled beer and waste, totally immobile as time ticked on until a woman crouched over him. He knew it was a woman because of her perfume—it was sweet like honey. And then he knew it was a woman because of her hair, long and pink as it was.

And then he knew by her voice. "I'll take care of you, Gray."


	23. Chapter 23

Grass snapped beneath Natsu's feet, so dry that it _crackled_ as he walked through a forest he didn't recognize, to a destination he didn't know, by the light of a moon that wasn't truly Earthland's. The trees all around were twisted and dead things, their limbs arthritic, knotty and uncooperative. They grabbed his clothes, pulled through his longer than ever hair, scratched his skin. The sensations were so very real. He told himself he was dreaming; how could that be so when his skin broke and blood leaked out, hot and wet? Every step taken meant the cold in his hand grew. As did the scales, so they weren't just restricted to his palm, but moved to his knuckles, and his wrist. The pressure he felt from beneath his skin was also very, very tangible. Something was trying to scratch its way out of his body. Something that grew more agitated with every step he took. Something that found its origins inside the fissure Zeref had torn into his heart when they gathered outside of the old guild hall.

Like the world's darkest flower, the nighttime forest opened to a meadow choked with _rushing_ grass. Pushed together by the breeze, the long reeds were forced to sing a haunting melody, one that clung to his mind. The path he walked forced him toward a winding river. Looking at the rippling surface, Natsu thought maybe _this_ was familiar. A dream within a dream visited his lethargic mind. Sitting on a blanket with Zeref, hearing the quiet water trickle by. The grape juice that made his lips sticky. The way it slid down his throat. And came back up. The beginning of the sickness that stole his life away and put these events in motion. _It's not the truth_. His protests were thinner than ever.

A huge crooked oak came into view, bark corked and whirled and crisped at the up-curved edges. It too was barren of life, its branches long since sterilized by an unforgiving force. Against the monstrous carcass, Zeref leaned. On the ground, his back against the tree, a loose fitting toga on his body, he stared at the black sky as if it would reveal a (secret) star. It didn't look as though it was in the business of telling tales, secret or not.

"Sit with me, Natsu." Zeref didn't even look at him.

Natsu made a fist and said the right words, even if he didn't feel them. "No. Get up and fight me. We'll settle this now, and you'll stop invading my dreams."

Zeref's dark lashes came to rest against his cheek. "Not here."

"Not here? What the hell does it matter where we are?"

Zeref maintained his stance. "This place wasn't meant for fighting. Come on. There will be plenty of time for that later. Sit with me. Let me pretend to be the brother you need."

Natsu felt his dreaming self falter. _Brother_. His heart hurt, missing something he didn't ever remember having.

Zeref said, "I've missed you, too. Sit, Natsu."

Natsu's legs did all the moving for him, bringing him in to the meadow the rest of the way, coming to the empty spot at Zeref's side. Yet, Natsu's knees remained locked, keeping him upright. He looked at the dark mage, at his _brother,_ and wasn't quite sure what he was doing. What either of them were doing, honestly. He wasn't sure of a lot of things. What to believe. His chest still hurt from Zeref's demonstration. Any rendezvous with Lucy wasn't going to totally mitigate that. "Answer me honestly, no bullshit, is it true?"

Zeref cracked an eye. "Is what, exactly?"

"Everything you showed me. Is it true?" Natsu didn't know _why_ he was asking. Everything in his head was telling him Zeref was a liar. His heart… well, that was another matter. He fingered the scales on his palm absently.

"I haven't lied to you," Zeref said, "Unless you count the visions I showed you in an attempt to break your façade, but those weren't lies exactly, they were more so an inevitability, if you didn't realize who you truly were. Everything else was undisputed fact. You are my little brother, Natsu Dragneel. You died when you were young from an incurable disease. At great cost to us both, I resurrected you. It was both the best decision of my life and the worst. I spend every day regretting it, yet thanking the gods that we had the time we did."

Natsu struggled to find cracks in Zeref's story. "Why did Igneel raise me then?"

"I asked him to, Natsu."

That wasn't good enough. "Why would he ever do that?"

Zeref's dark brow went up. "The dragon and I met while I was collecting herbs for my research. We became friends. After your illness… your mind was a blank slate; everything was gone. Even things like morality were lost on you. Igneel saw I was struggling to teach you everything you needed to know. One day he offered his wisdom and patience. Because I could do nothing but torment myself… I left you with him, thinking you'd be better off. And I was right. He treated you like a son, even after he learned what I was… what you were."

Natsu's chest ached. For Igneel. For Zeref.

This time, when Zeref rolled his head on his shoulder and said, "Sit," Natsu did, lowering himself down against the trunk of the oak. Steps ahead, the river trickled by. Eternal. Persevering. Everything Natsu felt like he was _not._

Zeref tugged at dead grass. "Mother used to get angry with me if I took you out here and stayed past sundown."

"Did it happen often?" Natsu clamped his mouth closed, not sure why he asked.

Zeref's smile was sad with reminiscence. "Every day that it was warm enough, when I wasn't busy in school or... visiting with Valentina." He got quiet. "It's been years, but it still pains me bitterly." Silence, then: "Long after she passed, there was another. You think I would have learned, but the heart... it does what it wants. It was even worse with her... I knew what was coming as I held her, but I just couldn't stop falling in love."

"She died?"

Zeref sighed. "In a way, yes."

Natsu didn't know if he should say _'sorry'_ or not. How long had it been? Did he love this other as much as he did Valentina? Did it _matter_ exactly _how much_ a person loved, as long as they loved at all?

Zeref saved him from his circular thoughts. "I think we were always doomed, Natsu. The Dragneels, I mean. Tragedy has followed us. Even before you got sick and I tampered with the laws of nature."

It was weird hearing his name like that, like he was part of a family. _Fairy Tail is the only family you need._ Yet he couldn't deny that he liked the way Zeref said that. He pushed the thought aside. "Why do you say that?"

The other man shrugged. "Just… things, one after the other. Recessions that left us hungry. Father seemed to always have to work, but we were never any further ahead. And then there was the accident at the mill. That's why mother insisted I became a scholar. She didn't want me to have to work so hard like Father did. She didn't want me to get hurt. And then you got sick. Mother used to say we were cursed from the moment the gods lay eyes on us. Sometimes, at night, she'd whisper it was because they were jealous. Maybe they were? Who am I to say? Before he died, Father would tell her it was that hubris that brought their wrath and made us all so unlucky. I'm more inclined to believe him. Men are not gods, Natsu, nor are we in their envy." He waved to himself. "And this is what happens when we forget that. Eternal misery. I just want it to end."

While Natsu tried to think of something to say, Zeref shifted so their shoulders just barely touched. Natsu stiffened, wondering if he should move, but the contact seemed to relax Zeref and it was a catching state. _You're enemies. Don't forget._

 _In the waking world_ , he rebutted. _In here... no one knows any different_.

Zeref said, "You have a great deal of heartache in front of you, Natsu, and for that I'm sorry. I wish things could be different."

Natsu looked at Zeref from out of the corner of his eye. The man was eyeing the river, a faraway look on his face. "What do you mean?"

Zeref's shoulders fell. "You're going to lose an awful lot before this is done."

"I will?"

"Yes. The people you love will hurt."

 _Lucy._ "No. I won't let anything happen to them."

Zeref puffed out his cheeks. "The only way to stop it is to remember who you are. As we speak, those loyal to me are doing everything in their power to draw out END. They want to kill the rest of your guild mates. I… I even made that order, told them they had free reign, if it came down to it. Even though I knew it would hurt you."

Natsu got cold, thinking not only of Fairy Tail being picked apart one-by-one, but also the artificial memory of Lucy getting mauled and violated by the pink haired demon. It was like ice in his veins. _There_ was the rage he was looking for. "Tell them to stop."

"I cannot."

"Why the hell not? They're yours, aren't they? They obey you?"

Zeref shook his head. "It's not so easy. The humans would, but my demons... they're trapped executing my will. Even if I said the right words, they'd know my heart's desire and they would never stop until my wishes were fulfilled. That's what it means to be a demon of the Book of Zeref. Free will is an illusion. Even you, Natsu, will experience that loss as soon as you become END."

Natsu was singular in what he heard, blurring out the end of Zeref's words. "Sounds to me like you just don't want it to stop." Of course not. The relaxation and brotherly affection that had been building went up in a cloud of smoke.

"I guess not, no, not deep down inside. I'm tired of this existence. I'm tired of the mistake I made. I'm tired of having everything I love die. Can you begrudge me?"

 _Yes_. Because no one was more selfish than Zeref. _No._ Because everything deserved the mercy of death. "This is bullshit."

Zeref didn't deny. "As we stand now, on our current course of action... everyone you love will perish. Your Master Makarov was the first to pay the price."

The world slowed. "Master?"

Zeref nodded. "He passed early yesterday morning. His body was returned to Magnolia. To his guild." Then the dark mage did the improbable, turning and gathering Natsu in a tight hug. "I'm sorry."

With his chin resting on Zeref's shoulder, Natsu only blinked torpidly, not sure of what to do. His first response was to stand; his legs were jelly. The next course of action was to push Zeref away. His arms wouldn't cooperate, either. At a loss and mostly paralyzed, he fell back on denial. It would always carry him; until it became too weak. "You're lying. The old man would never let you kill him."

"Let? No. He caused a great deal of damage before he met his end. Half of my castle was destroyed, and the majority of my marching force. He was formidable. But absorbed. He didn't think about protecting himself, Dimaria tells me. He was focused on protecting his family. Selflessness and the means to die… I envy him."

Natsu didn't know _when_ through Zeref's spiel he believed the dark mage, but the knot in his throat was undeniable. Apparently, denial was an unreliable friend. "It can't be."

Zeref's arms tightened. "His body is being burned at the guild hall as we speak, a show of respect for your fallen. I'm sorry. It hurt me to learn that."

Natsu still couldn't pull away from Zeref. He was stapled in place in horror.

Zeref continued. "After Makarov... who knows who will be next? Lucy Heartfilia seems like a logical choice to keep the body count low. You're deeply attached to her. I'm not the only one that thinks her death will push you over the edge."

"Don't touch her." Natsu's voice wasn't nearly as strong as he would have liked. That _thing_ living in his chest was pushing that fissure wider and wider, inviting a paralyzing coldness to seep up from the depths and envelop his body. Soon it would crawl out, and it would _never_ want to return.

Zeref fisted his hand in Natsu's shirt. "Then remember who you are. I only want one thing, Natsu. I want to die, and you're the only one that can grant me that wish."

Natsu stared out at the pitch black night, numb beneath the surface pain. "You said I'd die, too."

"Yes."

 _I don't want to die._ He did want this to end, though. He wanted everyone he loved to be safe. "Stop attacking Fairy Tail and I'll gladly give you what you want." _Really?_ Yeah. Really. His lungs felt small with fear. _Dying doesn't have to be scary._ He already got what most people didn't: the knowledge of _how_ it was going to happen. Whenever he felt brave enough to do it.

Zeref's responding sigh could be felt through Natsu's shirt. "I appreciate the sentiment, but you have no way of waking END. This is the best way I know how."

"Killing everyone I care about?" The anger was coming back, sneaking in through the numbness. "No."

"I don't want to, but you're not strong enough as you are."

 _Not. Not at all_. He knew what Zeref said was true. Just like he knew it the year before when they'd met on the battlefield. _Nothing's changed._ "We'll figure out a different way to do it."

Zeref finally pulled away. As soon as he was free of the dark mage's grasp, Natsu felt like he could _move_ again. He stood. Zeref joined him and said, "Spend time with the ones you care about, Natsu. Tell them you love them and think of all the ways they're important to you. Each time one of them draws their last breath, your resolve will be bolstered. Your fury is what will take us from this world." He started to fade then, enveloped by shadow.

"Zeref!" Natsu reached with a fire coated fist and met only air. "Zeref!" He was gone. As was the dream. Natsu was staring up at the ceiling in Briar's Lock, the cobwebs and spiders illuminated by the light of his still flaming hand. Beside him, Lucy had sat up and fallen out of bed. With her back against the wall, her long golden hair caressed her bare skin, glowing in the firelight. Her eyes were wide with too much white showing. She clutched her hand to her bare chest and breathed erratically.

"Natsu—crap. You scared me." Sounded like, too.

Natsu doused the fire, throwing them into darkness. The sheets smelled well-seared. "Sorry. Are you okay?"

She rubbed her hand. "I'm fine." Just a little singed, but who was checking? "What the hell?"

 _Yeah. What the hell?_ "Just… a dream."

She sat up straighter beneath the weight of her concern. "Another dream? About Zeref?"

He thought about telling her everything. His throat wouldn't work. _It can't be true anyway._ That was a lie that was a little more believable now that he wasn't staring at dream-Zeref, listening to his words. "It doesn't matter. Come here." He held out his scaled hand by force of habit. Lucy looked at it warily. With such little light, she was unable to see the changes Natsu could _feel,_ but was frightened nonetheless. The feeling passed. She got up and came to him, curling beneath his arm. He pulled her close and tucked his nose into her hair. _Say goodbye to the people you love._ To keep them safe. _If it was true… could you do it?_ Kill Zeref and end his own life, too? Leave behind his family for real this time? _No._ But how could he not?

They lay like that for a long time. Lucy's breath turned even. Natsu started to relax. His eyes became unfocused. Dream was reaching for him again. Before it could drag him under, a flicker of light caught his attention. A burning on the horizon. _Where the guild hall is._ A sinking feeling started in his chest and only expanded. His balls shrank up into his body.

 _Close your eyes. Don't look._ Like that would make it any less real. _It's not what you think. It's just kids or something._

It wasn't. He knew it wasn't. Sitting up disturbed Lucy. "What is it?"

"We have to go to the guild hall. Something bad is happening."

* * *

Laxus' legs felt like two concrete pillars stapled into the earth centuries ago. Every step he took was done slowly, stiffly, prolonging his ignorance. Who needed truth, anyway? _Not me._ And yet, he just kept on moving, unable to stop.

The smell of smoke was thick on the air, as was the sound of roaring fire. It blurred the rioting Thorn and Thistle, and masked the footsteps of those that approached him and Bickslow. Laxus hardly flinched when Evergreen and Freed came to his side, the former standing close enough that her shoulder rubbed his elbow. Beside her, Freed was chewing his cheek furiously, hand itching around his sword. There was something malevolent in the air. There was no denying that. The Briar's door opened again and the Strauss' came out.

"What's going on?" Mira called.

"Someone is burning the old guild," Bickslow replied when Laxus did not.

Behind Mira and her siblings came Erza and Levy, and behind them was Natsu and Lucy. Everyone was in various stages of undress, most crawling straight from bed, brought out by some force that was difficult to name.

Lucy's voice permeated the night, and Levy's. Mira's joined them. Beyond recognizing they speculated on the cause of the fire, Laxus was unhearing.

 _One step. Two. Three._ He counted them; it helped him to keep moving.

The noise fell away so now the crunch of footsteps followed his noisily. No one spoke; the tension was suddenly too thick for that. Dodging cracks in the road became spotty when the street lamps totally failed. Laxus' boot caught in a deep fissure. His ankle twisted and panged. He didn't cuss, afraid of breaking the silent spell that brought him so far.

The road curved up a steep hill. At the peak was the skeleton of the guild hall. The fire got brighter. Walking got harder, so Laxus walked faster. Closer now, in the sunset-red of the fire's glow, he made out a small group of people, five in total. Three were in guard uniforms, extinguisher lacrima in hand, the other two he didn't recognize, a tall woman with scarlet hair and a blonde. He dismissed them just as quickly, snagged instead on the cross shaped pyre. There was something at the core of all those flames. Something man-shaped.

 _Please no._

"Do we know what it is?" a guard asked.

"It's a person, obviously," said his partner.

The third guard said, "You don't know that. We have to get those flames out to be sure."

"I can't, though. I told you, the lacrima is fully charged… but it won't touch that fire."

Natsu spoke, reminding Laxus that he wasn't alone. "Those aren't regular flames."

The guard took a step toward their group. "Hey, you shouldn't be here."

Natsu ignored them. "…I'll put them out." He stepped forward, reaching for the fire.

Laxus' mouth moved without his permission. "Wait."

Natsu didn't, though. He never waited for anything. The flames came to him when he asked, swirling around his hand and then blinking out. What was left in its wake wasn't much. Yet it was more than enough. Laxus couldn't breathe. Couldn't _move._ The flames had only really chewed through the hem of the man's pants, everything else went untouched. No, they weren't regular flames. His face was familiar even in death. He'd been sliced a new, head nearly taken from his shoulders. _At least he didn't suffer._ Someone gasped. Someone cried. Someone swore. Someone gagged. Laxus stared numbly. Natsu reignited the funeral pyre.

* * *

As the fire faded, Laxus stared at the horizon, watching it turn dark blue. Natsu and Lucy left. After speaking with the guards, Erza and Levy went, too. Lisanna and Elfman as well. Now only Mirajane, Bickslow, Evergreen and Freed stood at his side. He wished he was alone. No luck. Evergreen tried to hold his hand. He kept shaking her off. Bickslow just kept shooting him glances, trying to find the right social protocols for this kind of situation, Freed… he looked like he was at a loss, struggling to find the perfect thing to say, the correct amount of consoling.

None, in Laxus' opinion. He looked to the guards, needing to put voice to his frustrations, needing something to distract from the aching he felt so deep in his bones. "You see who came up here?" Finding Gramps' killer wouldn't bring him back, but the closure it could offer...

"No. We just had a report of a fire from some pedestrian on their way home from the Thistle," one guard, a man in his late fifties, responded. "We came out to see what the deal was and… well… you know. The lacrima wouldn't work, so the only thing to do was watch it burn."

Laxus' eyes were drawn again to the cross where his grandfather had been strung up. _Who would do this?_ When he found them…

Well, he wasn't sure _what_ he was going to do. But it was going to be fucking satisfying. If he could ever get over this crippling shock. If he could ever _stop_ seeing Gramps hung up like a piece of meat. If he could ever _stop_ the chasm of hurt opening in his chest. His eyes were damp. He turned away from the fire so no one could see. The loss of visual contact was all he needed to get his feet moving again. There wasn't anything to see, anyway.

"What should we do with the body?" the older guard asked just as Laxus was almost out of vocal range.

"…I'll come back and bury it when the sun rises," Laxus said.

"We'll keep watch," Evergreen said at his back. Laxus assumed she meant her and the rest of their team. He didn't respond, trusting her to do just that.

Ashamedly, it took him a full five minutes of fast walking back to the Briar's Lock to discover that he wasn't alone; Mira wasn't keeping pace exactly, her legs were too short to keep up, but she was damn well trying. A good distance behind, her breath burst from her lungs, her dress _whooshed_ around her legs.

Laxus didn't bother to slow. Nor did he hold the door for her as he entered the lobby. He ignored the exhausted clerk at the front desk and took the stairs three at a time, legs stretching to make the assent.

Mira scrabbled up behind him, still fighting to keep pace. The upper level of motel smelled pungently like drugs. Laxus was inadvertently thrown into a bitter-sweet memory. Trying to sneak behind Gramps' back when he was a teenager, smoking in his bedroom, stealing liquor from the guild hall. Smoking drugs inside, like Gramps had no idea what it smelled like. The old man was never a fool, though. He knew every time. Sometimes he punished Laxus. Sometimes he'd let it slide. It depended on his mood, mostly.

It was an unconventional memory to make Laxus' heart pang, yet there was no stopping it. At his door, he came to an abrupt halt and poured his energy into getting inside. It was unlocked, meaning he didn't have to stand there for very long, fucking with his key, giving Mira a chance to catch up. He threw open the door and knocked it closed again using his elbow, all in one fluid motion. There was still no time to lock it before Mira slipped through, unperturbed about benign things like privacy.

Laxus had a look of disgust primed, yet he couldn't bring himself to turn around and look at her, afraid everything would fall apart if he did. So he went to his bag and dug out a bottle of whisky and drank a good portion all in one go. Mira appeared before him, ghostly in the pre-dawn light. He wished he could see her _less_ without any lights on.

"Get out, Mira."

"No." Her fingers closed around the bottle. There was an instant where they were in a stalemate, Mira pulling it away, Laxus holding it firmly. Determined, she grabbed his wrist. He released the bottle just so he didn't have to touch her anymore.

Mira didn't put the alcohol aside like he thought. "To Master Makarov." She mimicked his actions, taking a deep gulp, shivering as it slid down into her belly. She pressed the back of her hand against her mouth and closed her eyes, probably against tears, Laxus thought. Mira could cry a river. And if she started…

The choking feeling was back, his throat constricting. "Take the whisky if you want, but leave." It tasted like shit anyway.

Mira was as fucking stubborn as ever, coming to the bed and sitting like she was hunkering down for the long-haul. "When the sun rises, I'm getting up and I'm starting the reconstruction of Fairy Tail's guild hall. You can join me, Laxus, I'll be happy for your help, but if not, I understand. Take time to mourn. By the time you're finished, Fairy Tail will be new again."

That was such a _Mira_ way of dealing with things. "Mourning and rebuilding a broken guild isn't going to make things right." He was so _angry_. He'd never been angrier. He reached for the bottle again, tearing it from Mira's hands. She gave it up without much of a fight.

"I know it won't, Laxus, but I'm sure Master would want us to stand together beneath the Fairy Tail banner."

"I don't want to stand beneath a banner, Mira, I want to find who did this and I want to gut them. I want revenge."

"Laxus…" Mira started. She didn't seem to know how to continue, so she just stopped. That was alright, Laxus didn't know, either. They sat in strained silence until Mira said, "I'll help you hunt down his killer."

The dragon slayer closed his eyes, not quite ready to think about that yet. "Get out."

"No."

"I need some time, Mira. I need to process this or something." Or erase the cross shaped pyre from his mind.

"You shouldn't be alone, Laxus."

And that's where she was wrong. "Come on." He grabbed her elbow and stood, tugging her toward the exit. "Leave."

"But—"

Seeing she wasn't going to do it on her own, he bullied her all the way to the door and unceremoniously pushed her out, despite her protests, her wall-grabbing and her cussing. He closed the door in her face just as swiftly.

Then he just stared at the barrier, an unnatural quiet filling the air. Suddenly, he wished Mira was back in the room, even if she was spouting supportive feel-good crap because now all he had was his thoughts, and they weren't doing him any good.

He lifted the bottle of whisky and looked at it with disgust. _That_ wasn't doing him any good either. It rocked, threatening to spill to the floor when he dropped it clumsily on his nightstand. Laxus didn't bother trying to catch it. He went to his washroom and closed the door, then just stood there in the dark. No amount of blindness would take the image from his mind. _Gramps._ He cranked on the rusty taps and splashed cold water on his face, startling his body. He was just blindly reaching for a towel when he noticed light seeping into the washroom from beneath the door. Mira. Back from her hallway banishment, he'd bet. Annoyance came fast and hard.

Wearing an expression that had made countless wither, Laxus tore open the door and came out into the main room again. The effect of his scowl was slightly diminished with the light-blindness he experienced. And then his eyes adjusted. In the lamplight, Mira's hair shone like spun silver, her skin like ivory. Against the bed, she was brighter than anything he'd ever seen, and sadder, too, her nose as red as a cherry, her eyes still damp.

Gaze locked on his, Mira stood without a word and came to him, getting in close enough that her body brushed his. Her fingers skimmed over his lips, and then she was kissing him. She tasted like tears and whisky. For an instant, Laxus' mind went blank. In that blankness was reprieve. Hesitation fell to the wayside. He kissed her deeper and struggled to recreate that feeling.

* * *

Natsu sat on the floor while Lucy took up most of the bed and watched her shoulders shake. As she cried, he rubbed his arm absently, reaching beneath the overlarge sweater he wore to feel the scales that were slowly taking over his arm. So far, the night hid the change, but soon enough, morning would come and bring with it the hard questions. The questions Natsu didn't know the answer to.

"Who could _do_ that to Master Makarov?" Lucy's voice was barely audible, pressed out through a throat that was much, much too small.

"I don't know," Natsu said dazedly. Tears had abandoned him. The ache was too deep, even for violence. _END._ Igneel, now Master Makarov. And Zeref was going to take more. _Until you remember._ He'd give anything for the power needed to destroy the dark mage.

"First Wendy. And that—that demon that attacked me. And master." Lucy hiccoughed. "Why is this happening?"

Natsu didn't respond. He looked at Lucy and imagined her mouth moving, asking, ' _What if I was that thread?'_ Then he imagined her dead. The crack in his chest grew, the coldness inching over him. Another few scales burst through his skin, making their home on his body. _It's—_

Not true?

Not happening?

Too late to do anything but let things take their course? _What are you saying? Let Lucy die so you can get the fucking balls to kill Zeref_?

No. She would _not_ die, thank you very much.

"Natsu… Do you think this was Zeref?"

He couldn't get out of answering that. "Yes."

"What do you think he wants? Why hasn't he shown himself? Why does he just keep… picking us off?" Her lips were as red as her nose in the low light, wet and swollen because she kept chewing them. It was a nervous habit, and a new one at that. She never used to do it, he didn't think. The last year had been hard.

"He's trying to scare us." And it was working.

" _Why_ , though? Why won't he just leave us alone?" She gripped the blankets hard around her body, a tremor moving through her. "When Tartarus attacked, we had an enemy to fight. Now though…" They didn't know _where_ the attack was coming from, or when they would strike. Or even _who_ they were supposed to consider enemies.

Natsu got up off the floor and went to the bed. His foot was numb, gone to sleep from his sitting on it; his arm was colder than a block of ice. Both sensations took a back seat when he lay down and brought Lucy along with him. She curled beneath his body and shuddered. With a thought, Natsu made his skin warmer, trying to take away her chills. They weren't the kind that could be satiated with heat.

"I'm going to make sure nothing happens, Lucy. Master Makarov was the last person Zeref hurt." His dreams didn't seem so farfetched now. They were definitely more than what they seemed, and no amount of stubborn denial could make that less true. It had taken a long time, but Natsu accepted the truth. Zeref was his brother. END wasn't just some made up tale. He was rushing toward a destiny he couldn't avoid. _You just need to remember…_

"I'm scared for everyone, Natsu." Lucy clutched his shirt, holding him to her body. Natsu trailed his fingers down her arm. They were rough on her skin, the newly formed scales lacking sensation so he wasn't as gentle as he'd like. Lucy took his hand and held it, allowing her fingers to reveal the secret the night hid. "I'm scared for you."

He kissed her, wondering how much longer he'd be able to do that for.

* * *

Gray's fingers brushed over a filthy floor. Bits of grit stuck to his skin, some bit in, nicking his fingers—broken glass—others just rolled over. The ground beneath his shoulders was hard and unyielding. _Why am I on the ground?_ Then he thought it was because Juvia was on the bed.

But no. They hadn't gotten that far.

 _The fight. Then_ he thought it was because he was still on the ground outside the Thorn and Thistle. That wasn't right _either,_ though, the place he lay smelled distinctly like mildew and wasn't exposed to the elements. _Why? Where am I?_

His eyes were heavy. He made them open anyway and saw by the light of a stubby candle burning in the corner that he was in a small room. It looked as though it had survived in a warzone. Bits of drywall had flaked off the ceiling and the walls below it, the crumbs littering the water stained floor. The places that weren't damaged were painted some gentle colour, like light blue or lilac. Several books, swollen with humidity and torn up by mice, were strewn about, kicked to the edges of the room. A desk missing a leg leaned up against the wall, on its surface a sharp looking knife that glinted in the light.

Something else glinted, too. Hair as pink as a cherry tree's blossom. The girl it belonged to was tucked beneath a huge cowl, preventing her face from being viewed. With a great amount of effort, Gray propped himself up on his elbow. His face hurt, so did his ribs. And his nuts, but who was counting? He squinted at the girl, trying to see beneath her hood. She took pity on him, lifting slender hands and pushing the garment back to reveal a familiar face. She shouldn't _be_ there, though.

"Merdy?"

"Hi, Gray. How are you feeling?"

Like fuck. Like he'd been kicked by a donkey. Like he could throw up at her feet and keep going. Like he could cut his balls off and they'd feel better. "I'm alright."

She shook her head, a small wry smile on her mouth. "I picked you up out of the alley behind the Thorn and Thistle after a bar fight. You didn't look fine then, and you still don't now."

Yeah. "Did you see Juvia?"

She shook her head. "Only you."

Gray ran his tongue over his mulched lip. He didn't remember getting punched there, but he must have. "Fuck."

"Not so loud," Merdy scolded in a harsh whisper.

In a lowered voice, Gray asked, "Why?"

"Because… Jellal doesn't want our presence here known."

Sure, but, "What are you doing here?"

Merdy looked uncertain. "Do you promise not to say anything?"

"Yeah." And why not? With the way his brain felt then, dizzy and dry and inebriated, he couldn't even see himself remembering.

"Erza asked us to get Cheria to Wendy after she was injured."

"Erza?" Of course Jellal would be there for her; Gray didn't even know why he was surprised.

"Yes. They've been… seeing more of each other recently. But, we were supposed to refill our supplies and get out in a few days without anyone knowing. If he finds out I picked you out of the alley and brought you here, he'll probably be pissed."

Gray got it; Jellal did his best to skirt the limelight. "Where _is_ here?"

"You're in Magnolia's old school. Detention room," she explained. "The rest of Crime Sorciere is here, too. We're staying on the other side of the building."

"If you were afraid of Jellal finding out you dragged me out here, why did you bring me to the place you were staying?" Gray demanded.

Merdy wrung her hands together. "I didn't know where else to take you. Nowhere else seems safe."

"What do you mean?"

Worry befell her. "Sawyer went missing."

"What?"

She explained, "Earlier tonight. Like the rest of us, he was watching Briar Lock's perimeter while Jellal took Cheria inside. Then Jellal took off with Erza for awhile. We waited, just keeping watch, you know? When Jellal returned and we started heading back here, Sawyer didn't show up at his rendezvous point. I was looking for him when I found you."

Gray sat up a little straighter. "There are demons in Magnolia. They're Zeref's, I'm sure of it. Racer—" He'd never be anything else to the ice mage— "might have run into some trouble."

Merdy's eyes met the ground. "Richard died. On the way here. He was attacked, too."

Gray didn't know how close the two were, but they _were_ in the same guild. "I'm sorry, Merdy."

"It's fine. We all knew the risks." Her eyes glistened by the candle light, yet no tears fell. She was too stubborn for that. "It's just… every day it feels more and more like our guild is just on some kind of suicide mission. Die to redeem your sins. Ultear. Richard. Sawyer."

She was afraid.

"I don't want to die without redemption."

Gray didn't know how to comfort her.

Merdy shook off her fear in the face of something more important. "As we were walking here, I saw the members of your guild gathering around the Fairy Tail guild hall. It was on fire."

"Fairy Tail was?"

Merdy nodded her confirmation.

"Natsu?" Though _why_ he'd set fire to the guild was beyond Gray. It was the kind of stupid thing he'd do, though.

"He was with the rest of the group and seemed just as confused as everyone else," Merdy said.

Gray brought himself up further so he was almost standing, teetering on one knee. Sort of vertical, he realized that he was drunker than he previously thought. Not so much time had passed. "I need to get out of here and find Juvia. Then… I should probably see what's going on. But you and me, we should stay in touch."

Near-hysteria took her. "I can't. If Jellal finds out…"

"Then what?" It was easy imagining Jellal being cruel, but that was only because Gray knew the man from his Tower of Heaven days. Things were different now.

"I don't know," she said honestly. Her fear was real, however unfounded.

"Well… do you have a communication lacrima or something? Some way I could contact you if I need to?"

"For what?" Merdy asked.

"Like I said, there are demons around, Merdy." As much as he'd like to think that the one in the alley was a one-off, his father's panging mark told him differently. "Fairy Tail might need Crime Sorciere."

She shook her head, pink curls catching the firelight. "I don't have a lacrima, they leave traces." A considering look befell her. "There might be a way, though."

"What?"

"A sensory link. If we create one, you'll be able to sense if we need you and likewise." She flushed. "You'll be able to sense everything else, too, though."

Gray looked down at his blackened arm. "Yeah. About that… Things haven't been real great for me lately."

"I know about the devil slayer's mark," Merdy said. "Sort of. There isn't a lot of information on it, but Jellal made us research it anyway."

Gray screwed up his face. "Why?"

"…Just in case."

 _Just in case they needed to stop you, is what she means,_ Gray thought. The realization was a cold splash of water.

Merdy chewed her lip. "I can try to make the connection weak, but it runs the risk of breaking."

Gray said, "The weaker the better, I think." No one wanted to feel the cold rage he walked with. No one wanted the turmoil he was trudging through. "Do it. I'll try to keep the feels to a minimum." Good luck if he found Juvia. Or came across some other demon.

"I'll show you how to recreate the link if it fails and I can't reinitiate it," she said.

"Be quick," Gray said. His head was really starting to ache and his skin felt like it was on fire. He needed to get out of there and find Juvia. And then the rest of Fairy Tail. And _then_ he needed to sleep off what was shaping up to be a bad hangover. Maybe in between that he could get Juvia to crawl into bed with him, too. Tomorrow would look a lot better if she was sleeping beside him.

Merdy got to work.


	24. Chapter 24

The Thorn and Thistle was still a riot of noise when a girl with rich ebony skin came in to the washroom. Through bleary eyes, Juvia watched her shuffle to the sink in her golden heels. She watched her stoop to turn on the tap because she was so tall. She watched the dark braid slide over her shoulder and swing like a pendulum. Her eyes closed again, a force dragging her under.

Gentle tapping on her cheek called her back from a dark place. "Hey, Roo, you alright?"

Juvia blinked, fighting for focus.

"Some dog lay into you?"

"What?" Her tongue was thick, the word coming out garbled.

"Some guy. Your beau. He beat on you? Or was it that fight that done you in?"

 _Fight?_ She certainly _felt_ like she'd been in one. Juvia grunted.

"You need me to get someone? A friend? A doctor?"

 _Gray-sama._ She needed to find him. Juvia shook her head. That pained her so badly, she saw stars. "I'm okay."

"Hell you are. Stay here and I'll ask around." The sound of her heels clicking away fell into synchronicity with the dripping tap. Juvia closed her eyes again. _No. You have to get up. You have to find Gray-sama. You have to ask about the stone._ Because if she didn't…

Then…

Her mind blanked.

Purpose came back to her. _Then Gray-sama will hurt. His magic will take him away._ Though she was mad at him, she didn't want that.

 _Mad?_

Even the anger felt so far away.

 _Get up, Juvia. Gray-sama needs you._

It took two tries and a generous hand from the bathroom counter for Juvia to get to her feet. Once up, the room spun so violently her mouth watered, her light dinner and all the alcohol she'd drank threatening to climb on up and give her a visit. The feeling passed in a cold sweat. As soon as she was able, Juvia adjusted Eileen's cloak on her body so she was covered, then took an experimental step. Her legs held. She took another. And another, reaching with shaking hands for the bathroom's tarnished brass handle.

Beyond the door, the Thistle was a mess. Men lay on the floor, guards rounded people up, some still fought. Others were trying to steal alcohol from behind the counter. In all the mayhem, Juvia slipped unnoticed through the bar and up the stairs. First she would change, and then she'd find Gray. And everything was going to get better.

A tremor rolled through her. Terror.

* * *

The sound of muffled sniffling brought Wendy from a very dark place. Confused, she lay prone, eyes closed, and listened to the rough intake of breath, and the uneven exhale, too. That misery sounded raw and heartfelt. _I don't want to open my eyes_. Because as soon as she did, she'd have to learn what it was that made the crier so miserable. Ignorance was bliss. And wrong.

Her eyelids were heavy, weighed down by some force she couldn't name. So was the hand she lifted to press at her temple.

The sniffling stopped. "Wendy?"

Erza's voice, though altered by sadness, was still the same at the core. Wendy took in a fortifying breath and encouraged her eyelids open a tad more. What she saw didn't make much sense to her. A high wooden ceiling decorated with dusty cobwebs, stained drywall riddled with holes from pictures that had long since been torn down, either broken or stolen. She turned her head and found the red-nosed Erza. She at least was recognizable. "Erza… What's wrong?"

"Gods. You're awake." Erza wobbled on her legs like all of the strength was being drained from her body. She was pushed aside by a much taller and more-human-than-usual looking Carla. The cat-turned-girl came forward with hasty, uncoordinated movements and dropped to Wendy's side. Then she cupped her cheek with cold hands, fingers brushing over her freckles.

"You're awake." Carla had tears in her eyes.

 _Why is everyone crying,_ is what Wendy meant to ask. Instead, afraid of the answer, she said, "Where am I?"

Erza seemed to recover from Carla's assault. "You're in the Briar's Lock in Magnolia."

" _Magnolia_?" _What happened to Raven Canyon?_ "How?"

Erza asked, "What's the last thing you remember?"

Wendy scoured her memory. "Travelling through the passes… we stopped for the night. And… And I took the first watch." Erza nodded, encouraging her on, but that was all Wendy had. "Nothing else."

Erza rubbed her running nose on her sleeve in a very un-Erza like fashion. "You were attacked."

"Attacked?" Wendy repeated. A voice filled her head, eerie and haunting. ' _A girl falls into the valley, like those wishing to die, but nobody saw it happen, so nobody has to cry.'_

"You were thrown into the valley, Wendy. You've been unconscious for days."

"Days?"

"I took care of you," Carla said in a quiet voice.

Wendy found her friend's eyes, but it wasn't really Carla she was looking at, she was stuck in a memory, looking up at the sky as rock whirled by. The sensation was so vivid, Wendy jolted when her memory-self hit the ground. Carla rubbed her thumb over her cheek again, stapling Wendy in the _now_ so she could say, "I should be dead."

Carla shook her head furiously. "No. Don't say stuff like that."

But it was true; she fell a long, long way.

Erza was never one to sugar-coat things. "You would have died without help. Cheria healed you."

"Cheria?" Wendy's heart, so new to the waking world, did a weird palpitating flip that was both concerning and thrilling. Erza stepped aside, unblocking Wendy's view of the opposite side of the room. There on the couch was the girl in question. She was in a soft blue woolen blanket, so wrapped up that only her pink pigtails and her eyes were visible. Wendy expected her to be asleep—and maybe she had been—but now Cheria examined her closely, turmoil evident on her pretty face.

"Hi, Wendy."

"Hi." Wendy couldn't smother her smile; it came without her permission and stayed where it was until Erza said,

"We should talk about some things that have happened while you were asleep."

Right. The crying. Wendy sobered. In an attempt to fortify herself, she thought of all the things that could make Erza cry. The thoughts were circular and worrying; each scenario she drew up was worst than the last.

"Can't it wait until morning?" Carla interjected.

Erza took in a breath and held it.

"I agree," Cheria said. "There will be time for that later."

But now Wendy was curious; knowing would stop her from conjecturing. "You can tell me."

Erza, against Carla's glower, spilled. "Master Makarov was found an hour ago, killed and set aflame by a fire that didn't really burn."

Carla released Wendy and stood. "She's just woken up!"

"And she deserves to know," Erza said. "Someone is declaring war on what remains of Fairy Tail, and I certainly intend upon standing against them. Wendy, we'll welcome your help, if you're feeling up to it."

"Absolutely not," Carla said before Wendy could get a word in. "She's still weak. She was almost _dead._ It took Cheria _hours_ to bring her back! And you want her to stand and fight against—against an enemy we don't even know exists?"

"They exist," Erza said with forced patience. "Until now, their tactic has been to pick us off individually, but now that we're all together, things are bound to change. We should be ready for anything that comes our way."

Wendy could see that Erza wasn't sure if she believed that or not. It would be easier for any enemy of Fairy Tail to target them individually, because together they were strong. "Who else has been attacked?"

Carla said, "Please, Wendy, leave it be for now."

"I know you're trying to protect me, Carla, but it's okay. I don't need sheltering from this." As much as she'd like it. Hiding her head in the sand never helped her any, though. In the last year, Erza had taught her to stand and face her enemy, and she would.

Erza said, "Lucy and Natsu and Gajeel and Levy that we know of. Luckily, they're okay, however, if there are other Fairy Tail members coming home, it's safe to say that they too have been waylaid."

Wendy read the hesitance in Erza's voice and knew what the redhead wasn't saying. _Hopefully they weren't killed._ "Do we have a plan?"

"Tomorrow morning, I figured we'd converge and think of some way of drawing them out," Erza said. "You can rest until then."

Beside Wendy, Carla was fuming. It took the cat everything she had to bite back all of the nasty words she had at the ready. Wendy appreciated the effort.

"I'm glad you've woken, Wendy," Erza said. "It's nice to hear your voice again."

"It's good to see you, too," Wendy said.

Erza's smile was watery. "It's late and I'm exhausted. I need to get some sleep, but I'm sure you're not very tired."

Not at all; Wendy felt like she'd been sleeping forever. _Days._

"I'll stay up with you," Carla said.

"You've pushed yourself too far." Erza's assessment was kerosene on a sputtering flame. Carla whirled on her. If she was still a cat, her fur would be on end. As it was, her usually full mouth was a flat line. That look was her most dangerous.

Wendy recognized the coming storm and touched Carla's hand. "Carla, will you lay down with me? I am actually still a little bit tired." Just like that, Carla's fury withered. She nodded and let her magic go so she was a cat once more, then clambered up beside Wendy and shimmied beneath the blankets.

Across the room, Erza let out a tense breath and spun in a half circle, choosing a place to set up camp. Right in the middle of the floor, evidently. She reached into her armoury and pulled out her bedroll and set it up beside the couch. She asked Cheria, "Is this okay here?"

Cheria nodded, though it looked like she wanted to disagree.

"Alright." Erza closed her eyes and used her magic to change into sleepwear, and then shut out the light and stumbled her way back to her bedroll. Wendy stared out into the dark room, listening to her friend get settled. At her back, Carla was already breathing evenly. Soon she'd be snoring. As she thought that, the gentle sounds came. Minutes passed and Erza followed suit. Only Cheria remained conscious. Wendy looked for her eye's shine in the nighttime and saw that not only did the girl have her eyes open, she was looking back at Wendy.

"You're not really sleepy, are you?" Cheria whispered.

"No," Wendy whispered back.

"…Did you want to talk?"

Wendy's stomach did a weird flop. _Talk. About the kiss?_ She could only convince herself to be brave enough to say, "Yes. But… we'll wake everyone up."

Cheria's blankets rustled. The light wasn't really good enough for Wendy to see by; there was nothing wrong with her hearing. Cheria's heart beat fast, her breath was slightly erratic. Her tongue swiped across her lips. And then her feet were beneath her and she was padding across the floor, sidestepping Erza's sleeping form and coming to rest at the side of Wendy's cot.

Cheria's cold hand closed on Wendy's and pulled the dragon slayer up. "Follow me."

Wendy did, standing on legs weak from disuse, though she knew Carla would be mad if she woke. "We're not going far, are we?"

"Just the hallway," Cheria said.

 _Just the hallway._ Where it was secluded. It would be just them...

Cheria looped her arm under Wendy's shoulder and guided her out. The door opened with a whine that Wendy was _sure_ was going to wake the others up. They stalled up, listening intently for any change in breathing. It continued on as evenly as before. Everyone was exhausted. Cheria ushered Wendy out. The door closed much more silently and with great finality, blocking them from the world. In the pale hallway light, Wendy wrung her hands together. Cheria wouldn't meet her eyes, not until she removed herself from her wool blanket, wrapped half of it around Wendy's shoulder and guided her down to the ground, their hands laced together, backs against the wall. Then she wouldn't look anywhere else.

"Are you really okay?"

"You should know," Wendy told her. "You were the one that healed me."

Cheria shrugged. "I just wanted to make sure."

"I'm fine." Just nervous. She plucked at the pajama's Carla must have stuffed her into. Her heart swelled imagining all the things the cat did for her over the last few days. You couldn't buy friendship like that. "How did you know that I needed help?"

Cheria searched her eyes. "Erza sent Crime Sorciere to get me."

"Really?" And risk getting them caught? Wendy's heart swelled again. "I really do have the best friends." Though they were silly. "She shouldn't have done that. If Jellal got caught..."

"But he didn't," Cheria said. Then she snickered. "I thought she was going to do me in when we got here, just to make sure I didn't talk, so maybe don't say anything."

Wendy could perfectly imagine Erza's intensity. "I won't." They fell into what was supposed to be a comfortable quiet. All Wendy could think about was Cheria's shoulder bumping hers. Were they too close? Yes. Did she care? Yes, and no. She wished Cheria would do something other than just tickle her palm. She wished she was brave enough to… do something other than just let it happen.

"Why did you kiss me?" The words just popped out. Wendy clamped her lips together, surprised with herself.

Cheria's cheeks pinked. "Did you not like it?"

Wendy felt her own face get hot. "I don't know." There were so many things she wanted to ask but didn't know _how._ "It was surprising." Things got quiet again. Wendy stared across the hallway, studying the dirt-ridden gaps between the filthy floorboards. When was the last time Briar's Lock scrubbed up here? Ages and ages ago. _That's not what you really want to think about_.

Cheria cleared her throat. "If you didn't like it, that's okay. I won't do it again."

Wendy shrugged awkwardly. "Maybe it was okay." She shot a furtive look Cheria's way to gauge her reaction. The girl looked spooked and half-mad with courage.

"Okay enough to do it again?"

Wendy clutched Cheria's blanket around her body and nodded, too afraid to speak. The fear took a step back as Cheria's mouth landed on hers. The second time was better than the first, and worse. Better because it wasn't so quick; worse because Wendy could _think_ about all of the things she hadn't been able to before—like if she was doing it right as the kiss turned from a press of lips on lips to something more… wet and opened mouth. It was less decent than anything she'd ever shared with anyone else before, but far tamer than the one she'd accidentally spied between Erza and Jellal. Her heart fluttered, her mind wandered to a place where she wondered if she was going to feel the slickness of Cheria's tongue next, and what she would do if that happened. Pull back and hurry away? Return it?

Footsteps on stairs caught her attention far too late. By the time Wendy realized that they had a visitor, Juvia had already topped the landing and saw them together. Despite Wendy's desperate attempt to get some space between her and Cheria, the damage was done, Juvia had seen the kiss. The water mage's brows went up beneath a fringe of damp sapphire hair, her pink mouth pursed. Her neck got red.

"Wendy…"

Wendy couldn't even think of something to say. That wasn't much of a problem. The door to their room opened and Carla stuck her head out into the hallway. She found Wendy and Cheria bundled together and her scowl deepened. " _Why_ are you out here?"

"Talking," Wendy fumbled. "Just…"

"If you must, then do it in here, Wendy," Carla said sharply. "No need to put an 'attack me again' beacon over your head." Her words and tone were harsh because she was scared, Wendy knew. The knowledge helped her not be quite so _frustrated._ She stood; Cheria joined her. Wendy turned to say good night to Juvia but she was already gone.

* * *

Gray's arm sang for an entirely new reason. Meredy's magic pulsed against his skin. He could feel her on the opposite end of that. She was frightened. Not the kind of frightened that said her life was in danger, but the kind that kept you up at night because you couldn't bear to close that other eye. She was about to meet with someone; he'd bet any money that it was Jellal.

Listening in on their conversation wasn't an option in the traditional sense, though he _could_ feel everything Meredy could. Needing to put his attention elsewhere, he did as she taught him and tuned her out. He wasn't incredibly good at it after only an hour's worth of practice when he was as drunk as he'd been in a long time, however it was enough to dull his heart from speeding right along with hers.

The middle-class district where Magnolia's school was located was heavily damaged still. Only the rich part of town had made any _real_ progress in cleaning up. Here there was still the skeletons of shops, broken frames reaching skyward through brick facades like bones bursting through fragile skin. Gray skirted a pile of shattered glass and came to a crossroads. To the right was the old guild hall with its fire still raging, to the left was Briar's Lock and the Thorn and Thistle. Juvia. He wavered, on the verge of going to the former just because he felt like it was his responsibility. Juvia won out. If he found her and she wasn't naked and sweaty under that guard, they could go together and see what was going on.

 _And if she is?_ Well… he didn't know what he'd do. Something. He walked faster, feeling a thread of insecurity he was unused to. As he went, he didn't pay nearly as much attention to the night as he should have. Racer was gone from his mind, as was Meredy and the fire and everything else that wasn't Gray-and-Juvia-centric. He felt like an addict itching for something he shouldn't have, something that was taken from him prematurely.

The broken road curved upward; his calves burned almost as much as his split knuckles did, which was only half as much as his pounding head. Briar's Lock came into view first. Just beyond it, the Thistle seemed to calm down some. There were still angry voices leaching out from inside, however, there was less breaking. The guards were getting it under control. _Maybe that means_ Riley _is too busy to be pawing Juvia._ He hadn't hated anyone so much with such little provocation.

Gray was just passing by Briar's Lock when a flick of light drew his eyes upward. He searched the second storey and found the room the light had come on in. It was his own. He rerouted his steps despite his throbbing heart. He knew what he _wanted_ to find inside; who knew if that would be the case?

The front desk was empty; big surprise. The stairwell and the adjoining hallway was also deserted. Undeterred, Gray used huge steps to bring him to his room. The door was open a crack. He placed his palm on its heart and pushed it wider. The lights were off despite his surety that they were on only moments ago.

A search of the immediate area revealed his quarry hiding in a shadow's fold. She'd found a new dress to wear. Well, actually, it was an old one, and it was one of his favorites. He could see the overlarge gold buttons shining by some stray light when she moved. He could see the ivory splash of skin at her breast. He could see the long line of her leg peeping out from the midnight material. Remembering the last time she'd worn it, between his legs got hard; he couldn't help himself. He breathed deeply and closed the door, locking them in together.

"You came." Gray could hardly believe it; he thought he'd have to track her down and drag her back, but here she was.

"Yes." Juvia's voice trembled, a warbled in it that made his heart lurch.

"What's wrong?"

"I..." Her breath hitched.

Gray crossed the room and took her by the arms. She was shaking so badly that her teeth chattered. Searching for her eyes didn't help any, it was too dark. "What is it? Did something happen?"

She only vibrated in his hands.

"Juvia. What? What is it?" She was scaring him.

She took in a short breath and spat out, "You weren't at the Thistle."

Was that all? A tight ball of tension unwound itself. "Sorry. I tried waiting for you, but there was a fight and I got kicked out." And had his ass kicked, too, but he didn't need to go there. His head still ached from that stray club. "And then ah... Meredy found me. That's a long story."

Juvia leaned against his chest, bringing them closer than they had been in days, and closed her fingers around his wrist. Around his father's mark. Her next question was unexpected. "How are you feeling?"

Dizzy, overwhelmed, hopeful as well as confused. He'd expected jealousy when he mentioned Meredy, yet she didn't seem very interested in that. "I'm alright."

"This is still bothering you." She sounded a bit detached. Gray passed it off as drunkenness.

"Don't worry about it."

She was relentless. "You didn't take the stone like you promised."

Gray faltered. "Juvia..."

Her face tipped so she was only inches from his mouth. He could feel her hot breath against his lips as she said, "You told me you would."

 _Liar._ She didn't sling the accusation; Gray did it enough for her. "Yeah."

"Please, keep it, Gray-sama. I want you to be safe."

That really did the trick. "Okay." He only needed to find it now. Wriggling out of her grasp wasn't what he wanted, yet the will to please her was stronger. His foggy memory brought him to the bed. More specifically, to the floor at the bed. Juvia caught his arm before he could get on his hands and knees and guided him to the mattress. Gray went all too willingly, though he couldn't for the life of him figure out what she wanted.

Juvia held out her hand and answered his unasked question. "I picked it up for you."

 _Oh._ Gray cupped her smaller hand in his. She was uncalloused and soft. And unyielding. He expected her to drop the stone in his palm; she held it tight. "I can't take it unless you give it to me, Juvia."

She said, "I want you to be safe. I don't want you to hurt anyone with that magic. I don't want you to be hurt. I—I don't want it to take you away."

 _From me._ He filled in the last bit, hoping it was true. "I know." Just thinking about taking that stone made him uneasy. That being said, if it kept her there than he would, regardless of the ill-at-ease feeling he courted. _It's only temporary. You can release it whenever you want if you need your magic again. It's fine._

Juvia still had a strong hold on it. Gray tugged her in more so she was mostly straddling his one leg. Legs spread, her dress tightened around her hips and lifted a few inches; he couldn't help but wonder if she was wearing as little beneath it tonight as she usually did. He touched her hip, fingering the fabric, and wasn't reprimanded for it. Encouraged, he kept going, squeezing where he could, feeling her body beneath the dress. Juvia's breath turned uneven. She took in a gulp of air that sounded pain-laced.

"Are you okay?"

With the way the moonlight drifted through the curtain he could only see her full mouth and the tips of her damp curls resting on her chest. She'd showered at some point. "Yes."

Touching her made his heart thunder. Gray continued, keeping his fingers light. Reaching her neck, he cupped the back of her head and pulled her down so slowly.

"Gray... you said you wouldn't..."

"Don't push me away. Please, Juvia."

Juvia's breath came in a short groaning puff. Knowing what that sound meant, Gray tugged her closer. His fingers touched a raised spot beneath her hair. It was hot. Her mouth met his and he forgot to ask what it was.

The kiss deepened, so did the pain, Gray's lip protesting the abuse it'd received and then _this._ As Juvia planted one leg on the bed and brushed over his groin with the other, he found he didn't care. The girl's reservations fell away. She loosened her iron-clad grip on the stone. Determined to prove they could do this, Gray wriggled it from between her fingers and felt the immediate effects, his magic getting sucked away. It was so startling, he tried to drop it, thinking a good place for the artifact would be the bed for now. Juvia stopped him from releasing it, curling her fingers around his.

"You promised."

Yes, he did. He kept it, holding it tight while all the sickness, the ever-present migraine, the coldness... it all disappeared. What it left behind was Meredy's magic and drunkenness. And Juvia. She was brushing her fingers over his chest, she was undoing his shirt's buttons, she was touching his bare skin, lightly at first, and then with more decisiveness as if she came to terms with her decision.

Gray's mind blanked of everything but _this._

Juvia got his shirt open and pushed him back. That strip of moonlight had moved lower, so the only part of her he could see was her fingers working at her chest to get her dress undone. The material unfolded, exposing full breasts unhindered by anything like a bra. The soft thump as the material hit the ground made Gray harder still. He fought with his belt. Juvia pushed his hands aside and did it for him, the movements practiced. He lifted his hips to aid with the shucking of his pants, all too satisfied when he was free. They went the way of the dress, forgotten on the floor.

Juvia came for him, bare skin sliding over bare skin, and climbed on top. Though he hardly had her like this, it was the way Gray liked her best, that way he could watch her cheeks pink, her breasts bounce, he could feel her hands dig into his ribs to force the air from his lungs as she lifted herself up and came back down again. He wished he could see more of her in this light; he didn't dare stop to turn on the bedside lamp, afraid that she'd change her mind if he did _anything_ at all. In the darkness, he clutched the stone, feeling it take and take, and tilted his head, allowing Juvia to kiss his chin and his neck. Her mouth was as hot as embers. Sometimes, he felt like she was the only thing that kept him from staying cold.

Down she moved, to his collarbone, and up over his bicep, to his wrist, to his palm. Her mouth opened and she took his finger deep inside, her tongue moulding a promise of what _could_ be. She only stopped when Gray groaned lowly and arched into her.

Long after her mouth trailed back to his chest, Gray felt a burning in his palm. He folded his arms over his head and tried to pass it off as his imagination, focusing on Juvia getting lower and lower, but it became obvious that the stone was heating up. He squeezed it just to be sure. With such little effort, the structure buckled under the force of his grip and the stone fragmented, cracking into several different pieces, some large, some small.

"Fuck."

Juvia found her destination at that moment and took him into her mouth. The sensation was so intense, Gray closed his eyes, deciding that the shards stabbing into his palm hotly weren't important, the pain could be forgotten. He let the broken stone go, thinking as they tinkered to the ground that he'd tell Juvia about it later.

Using her tongue, Juvia teased and teased, pushing him to the edge of orgasm. He waited for her to finish. And waited. She held him in her mouth, feeling him pulse on her tongue, then came away. Gray's frustration sang all the way through his bones. He waited for the pulse of coldness that usually accompanied it but he was hollow _. Hollow_? Searching revealed only a faint twang of his father's magic despite the stone's absence. He would have spent time being worried if he wasn't entrapped by something else: Juvia sitting up, climbing up his body. Her lips pressed into the corner of his mouth.

"I can never seem to stop myself."

He wished she never would. He tipped his hips. "Because you love me."

She didn't confirm or deny as she took him deep inside, perhaps unable to betray herself in quite that way. Gray didn't point out that her actions were much more telling than her words. Why would he be such an idiot? Faintly, he hoped that this would be the thing that healed the rift between them. He kept his eyes open the whole time, wanting to memorize everything though it was too dark to see.

* * *

Against his lips, Juvia's forehead was damp with sweat. They laid like that for long enough that the sky was bruised by the sun.

Juvia swirled her fingers against his skin and murmured lowly, "I wasn't supposed to do this. Be with you."

Her shame was palpable. That hurt, "Why not? You obviously wanted to."

"Just because I want something doesn't mean I should have it. I only came I make sure you were okay, Gray-sama."

 _Gray-sama_. She couldn't help it. "I'm okay if you're with me." That sounded just like the fluffy bullshit that was hard to say but Juvia loved.

Predictable to the last, she weakened. Then she summoned her resolve. "I want to be, but... I keep asking myself, are you thinking about someone else? About Lucy?"

"No." Not until the lights went out and sleep was coming and Juvia was telling him how much she loved him and he couldn't stop thinking about what he did.

She acted like he hadn't spoken. "And then I think, you may be lying."

He pushed her hair aside, though it didn't help him see her. The moon had sunk and now it was too dark. "...What if I could make you feel what I do?"

Her face tilted so her lips brushed his chin. "How?"

Tentatively he said, "...I know how to do the sensory link Meredy used on us on Tenrou."

Quiet, then, "You do?"

"Yeah. She showed me."

"Why?"

"So her and I could keep in contact. But it doesn't matter. The only thing that's important is that if I do it, you'll know." Everything. There wouldn't be any hiding. She'd know the weird sense of pain twisted desire he felt when he was with her, she'd know that when he saw Lucy, his guts wrung with something more than guilt, but she'd also know that despite that, he didn't love Lucy, not the way he loved Juvia. "If you want, I'll do it." They'd never be closer. It would either drive a stake between them forever, or it would pull them together. "You'll know how I feel. For sure. I can't lie through it." It was as much for her as it was for him.

Juvia swirled her fingers over his chest more quickly. "...Are you sure?"

"No," he said honestly, "But you'll have your answers."

He felt rather than saw her nod. He was reaching for the magic before she finished so there was no time for him to hesitate or second guess because if he did, he'd chicken out, and if he chickened out, he'd never get another opportunity like this because Juvia would never let him get near again.

The magic was strange to him and didn't at all come the way he thought it should, as it did when he was practicing with Meredy. Short spurts of erratic power was the best he had. Clamping down on his concentration didn't seem to help all that much. _Be patient_. That was Meredy in his head. He couldn't tell if it was the real deal reaching through their connection, or if it was a memory _. Patient. Right_. He imagined he and Juvia as two islands, the sensory link the bridge that spanned the space between them. Carefully, methodically, he built it up, relying on the foundation that was already in place.

At first, when the connection was made, Gray wasn't sure it worked at all. Then, aside from all of his own shit he had twisting around in his brain, a new sensation befell him. Fear. No, that wasn't right. Terror. Dulled, but _persistent._ It kept coming and coming, buffeting him and leaving him breathless with its force.

"Juvia." He found her in the newly arrived predawn. "Juvia, what are you afraid of?"

"Afraid?" Another tremor took her. Gray was brought back to his entry into his room, seeing her silhouetted by the window, the way her body vibrated. "What happened? What made you so scared?"

"The better question is, devil slayer, are _you_ afraid?" She didn't step through a door or a window, but a portal that snapped closed just as quickly, a woman with hair so pink, it was bright even in low light.

Gray tensed, feeling very much at a loss.

"Akio," Juvia whispered. Her fear reached new heights. There was a long moment where no one did anything. Juvia was paralyzed by her fear, meaning so was Gray. He could feel everything she could, right down to the way her breath hitched in her lungs and her head got fuzzy. This person— _demon, Akio—_ made her feel helpless. Gray tried to separate their feelings like Meredy showed him. It wouldn't work; he couldn't focus on anything but the demon before him, the one missing one hand, her wrist a raw stump. _Do something. Anything_. He reached for his slayer magic. It wasn't there. Panic tried to take him. _No. Get up. Once you do that, you can focus_. He stood, holding his shorts in place. Like a statue animating for the first time, Juvia joined him, movements jerky as she clutched the blankets to her bare chest.

Standing didn't make as much of a difference as Gray hoped; his magic was still out of reach. _Don't falter._ He wouldn't show any weakness. "What do you want?"

The demon ignored him for the time being and directed her attention to Juvia. "Don't think this makes up for Lady Eileen's punishment." She held up her red, wet stump. "We'll think of some really, really awful way to punish you because I was fond of this one, it made lovely copies, but thank you for your help sabotaging the devil slayer's magic, Juvia. I couldn't have done it without you."

Gray's mouth got dry. He looked to a shivering Juvia and waited for her to deny it.

The demon raised a thin dark brow. "Don't hold your breath waiting for your slut to shoot me down, it's true. That little stone? Lady Eileen's. It worked as it was supposed to, sealing your magic for good. Juvia was _eager_ to deliver it."

"No." Juvia's words fell flat.

"Yes." Akio pointed at her animatedly. "And now he's helpless."

Juvia clutched Gray's wrist. "Let go of the stone, Gray-sama."

Gray fingered his torn up palm.

"He can't," Akio said when Gray did not. "It's gone. Along with his curse. Good work."

"No." Juvia turned wide eyes on Gray. He looked away from her, willing himself not to feel the unfair anger or sense of betrayal that rose like bile in his throat. It was near impossible, and so connected, Juvia felt everything, too.

Her voice warbled. "I didn't know, Gray-sama."

No. She didn't. Knowing that didn't change their situation or placate the anger. Feeling what he did, her eyes watered, the tears spilled over in seconds. Her sadness was debilitating.

 _Focus._ On the real things. He'd deal with _that_ later. He set his sights on the demon. "I killed you."

"Only an imitation." Akio's lips peeled back to reveal sharp teeth. "I'm the real deal. Without your magic, you'll find yourself very much at a loss. Now, you do have to die, and I am supposed to do it quickly, but feel free to fight a little. Master Zeref won't know if I procrastinate some."

"Zeref?" Juvia repeated. "You and Eileen are his?" She was drowning in the duplicity.

"Of course." Akio laughed seeing the look on Juvia's face. "You didn't think Lady Eileen _actually_ liked you? You were a tool, in perfect place to get to the devil slayer. She used you to carry out Master Zeref's will and that's all. You were easy, hurting like you were."

More tears filled Juvia's eyes, yet when she spoke next, her voice came out strong, full of a resolve it didn't have even seconds ago. "Why does Zeref want to hurt Gray-sama?" She had buried her fear and her pain and even managed to put herself between Gray and the demon. Typical. Gray was reaching for her to pull her back; the demon's next words stopped him up short.

"To ensure he can't harm Master Natsu."

"Natsu…?" Gray said. "Why would I do that?"

"Mm… Master Zeref was afraid you'd have an objection to END's awakening."

"What?" Gray asked, though he'd heard her perfectly well.

"When he came into this world… the only one that could have opposed him, aside from Master Zeref himself, was you. And that was unacceptable. Master has waited too long for this. You have to die. Master Natsu will remember who he truly is, and... all of Master's creations can be free." She said the last like it left a sour taste in her mouth.

"Shut _up_." Gray reached for any dregs of magic he could find. The only thing that would come was his maker magic. _It's always been good enough before._ He moulded a sword and was swinging before he stopped speaking. It carved through the air without meeting resistance, Akio gone. Juvia's hand disappeared from Gray's. He heard the thump of her hitting something hard, then found her seconds later, forced against the wall by Akio's one good hand clutching her throat. She'd never looked so dazed. The bedsheet she'd been holding so fiercely slipped so her crystalline skin was on display. It would have looked pure, but a line of red trailed over her shoulder and between her breasts, marring the illusion.

"Juvia!"

The water mage blinked her large blue eyes and came back to herself. Listlessness fled and was replaced by fury. Her magic was in her hand. It hit the demon squarely in the chest. It was to no avail. Water washed over the floor, soaking Gray's bare feet and the filthy carpet and then dissipated, less like a tempest and more like a gentle summer wave.

As the water faded, Akio proved herself unharmed by lunging for Juvia's neck. With a mouth that was suddenly much wider than before, she sank her teeth in. Gray's yell stopped nothing. When that didn't work, he attacked again. His sword hit its mark and slid away, pushed aside by scales. That failing, he dropped the weapon and got in close enough to use his hands, clamping on the demon's neck with everything he had, squeezing and squeezing, feeling tendon's pop, her windpipe crunch. Still against Juvia's throat, the breath wheezed out of Akio's mouth. Gray reached again for his father's magic and didn't have it.

"Fuck—" The curse dissipated in a weak _whoosh_ of air, forced out of his lungs by Akio's elbow. The hit was hard enough to crack a rib and send him soaring back. The fall to the floor was even more painful than the initial trauma. Gray didn't allow himself to stare at the ceiling as he wanted. He sat up. Because of his stubbornness, he had the perfect view of Juvia sinking to the ground, legs giving out on her like a deer's on ice. Her throat was all crimson. She clutched it weakly and stared at Gray with eyes bluer than the sea. Through their connection, Gray felt her hopelessness, her pain, her fear, her sorrow. It was too much. He couldn't block it out.

Akio stepped before him, obscuring his view. Her boot, when it collided with his face, was steel-tipped. Gray's cheek split. Spots danced before his eyes. They intensified as his body hit the ground again, Akio's hand closed around his throat.

"How does it feel, filthy devil slayer, to be stripped of your magic?"

Gray rasped, "I don't need devil slayer magic to beat you." It was a boldfaced lie; they both knew it.

Akio let it go, knowing she had the upper hand. "And how about your Juvia's betrayal? That must sting, yes? I think I'll keep you alive for awhile longer so you can watch while I defile her. Think of it as retribution for all the demons you've hunted."

 _Defile?_ The connection between he and Juvia was still alive. With the demon's words, Gray _felt_ what Juvia had hours before. The realization left him breathless and ill. "I'll tear your other hand off and make you eat it." That too was embellished. His palm hurt; his head hurt; his body hurt. Everything felt _wrong._

"It's a pity you're a wolf without your teeth. Even hours ago, a threat like that might have made me tremble." Akio got in close enough that they were only centimeters apart. "Lastly, before we begin, tell me how it feels to be betrayed by your friend?" Her breath smelled sour, like cheese gone off. "Does it destroy you to know that you've wasted _so much time_ looking for END, and all you had to do was turn around and slide a knife in Master Natsu's ribs?"

The only thing Gray could say was, "He isn't END." _Is that really all you have,_ he scolded himself.

Akio's fingers dug into his throat. "You _lie._ I can smell it on you. You know in your heart it's true. You've sensed him here."

 _Yes._ The sickness. The dizziness. The migraines. "You," Gray choked out stubbornly. "It was you I could feel." _Not Natsu. It can't be._

She shrugged. "Go into death in ignorant bliss or enlightened, it makes no difference to me. I'm about to take everything I could possibly want from you. As I have Juvia, I'll remember the face you make for a long, long time."

Gray growled, rallying strength from _somewhere_ and lifted his knee. It hit Akio directly in the ribs. She hardly flinched, except to bring her free arm across in a vicious elbow that caught Gray in the chin hard enough that for a good twenty seconds, he didn't know anything at all.

When he came to again, Akio wasn't kneeling before him. She tugged the remainder of Juvia's bedsheet away with her one good hand, exposing the water mage. For Gray, clarity didn't really ring through until the demon grabbed a huge handful of her left breast and squeezed tight enough that it must have hurt. Juvia did nothing, blank eyed and dead to the world. The rage Gray felt wasn't enough to break the spell that held his magic prisoner, but it was enough to put a small fracture in it, a curse, after all, wasn't something that could just be taken away. For an instant, he was half of a devil slayer again, taking the magic that was never his to begin with and channeling it into _something_ useful.

An icy layer entrapped the entire room. Akio screamed. Gray looked but couldn't see the effects of his efforts; the backlash from the spell had him seeing black.


	25. Chapter 25

A cold chill pulled Natsu from a light (and blissfully dreamless) slumber. Pale blue predawn light snuck through the window. In the distance, the fire that held Master Makarov captive still crackled along, and likely would until the sun rose to chase it away. For an instant, Natsu hated flame. He was ashamed of the feeling as soon as he identified it. After all, flame was Igneel's gift. It was the last thing he had of his adoptive father. Beneath his body, Lucy shivered and shimmied closer to him, saving him from an ugly feeling. "Are you awake?"

"Yeah," Lucy whispered, though there was no one else in their room to be quiet for. Faintly, Natsu wondered where Happy got to, if he'd ended up staying with Carla, or if he'd gone with Lily. He felt like a bad friend, too caught up in his own shit to make sure Happy was okay. He'd loved Master just as much as everyone else. A colder thought came to him. _What if he's with neither? You don't think Zeref would have…?_ He dismissed the dark image in his head. Happy was okay. He wouldn't have wandered away from the others.

Lucy said, "I thought I heard fighting. It woke me up."

Natsu listened. Everything was quiet. "I don't hear anything."

"Maybe it was just in my dream, then." Lucy shivered. "Why the heck is it so damn cold in here?"

Natsu grabbed the blankets and tugged them up more properly, then used his magic to increase his body temperature. It didn't work quite as well as he hoped. Trying to probe why felt like peering down a rabbit hole he wanted nothing to do with. "Fall's coming?"

"Maybe."

Natsu could tell she didn't really believe that. The girl squirmed again and he suppressed a sigh. "I'm going to have a shower." A sweltering one so he could get away from the cold that started with his scaled arm and ended in his chest.

"Alright."

Untangling their bodies was a near-impossible task, and not just because their limbs were twisted together like tree roots. Natsu didn't want to let her go. Her bare skin was on his, her glossy hair was tangled in his fingers, her breath was warm sliding down his neck, making him feel human. He did release her, though, and thought of it as practice for when he took Zeref's life away. Imagining the day had nervousness chasing him to the dresser to grab a pair of jeans, and into the bathroom.

He threw the clean pants onto the counter then hesitated, finger on the light switch, unsure if he _wanted_ to turn it on, afraid of what he'd see. For all the uncertainty, he was never one to let fear control him, not for long. Natsu flipped it up. The light was so blazingly bright, he had to close his eyes until they adjusted, meaning when he felt he could, the first look he had at his arm was through his lashes.

It was covered in scales blacker than pitch in direct light, smoke-grey when he rolled his forearm. The fear was back full-force. Strangely, a very human urge kept him from hyperventilating and running—as if he could run from himself—he had to pee. That was done with his blackened arm behind his back, otherwise, he couldn't go.

 _Good,_ Natsu thought when he was finished. _Now shower._ Another very human thing. He stripped off what remained of his clothes, recalling as he did so what _got_ him into that half-dressed predicament: Lucy and her _braver-than-you_ actions. Her kisses leaving a hot trail down his abdomen. Her mouth closing on his erection, doing things he didn't even know she knew how to do. _That_ felt very human, too.

When he took off his shorts, he was stiff all over again. Ignoring it for a moment, he turned on the hot water all of the way and the cold just a little and climbed beneath the spray. There, in the sweltering confines of the off-yellow bathtub, in the smaller-than-a-closet bathroom, with the calcium choked showerhead artificially enhancing the water's spray, Natsu felt more human _again._ He had a hard time imagining one of Zeref's demons standing in a place like this, barely living off the rations gathered from a shitty job handed out by the King's Guard, stripped of _both_ of their father figures and _aching_ because of it _._

He tugged the tree frog shower curtain over so he didn't soak the floor (even though it could use a good wash) and washed his hair with the only shampoo available—that cheap strawberry shit Lucy was using. Then he washed his body with the tiny bar of soap motels seemed to find acceptable. He was just rinsing again when a tap sounded on the door. Not that he could smell her over the chemically shampoo, but Natsu was sure it was Lucy. His heart lodged in his throat, imagining _why_ she might want to come in (to tell him someone else had died? To say she knew exactly what was happening to him and she hated him for it?) muffling his "Yeah?"

Lucy didn't call through the barrier like Natsu thought she would. She pushed it wide and came in, still bare from the waist up and seemingly unashamed for it, leaving herself uncovered. Her hair was a knotted mess of golden chains, and her skin was raised in goose bumps. Even with his heart speeding nervously and his hand trapped behind his back, Natsu couldn't help but take her in greedily over the top of the half-clear shower curtain. His heart jumped again as she closed the door.

"What's wrong?"

Lucy met his eyes through the translucent barrier and pinched her lips together. Her cheeks were pink and her heart was speeding, Natsu could hear.

"Did something happen?" He was already reaching for the shower knobs.

Lucy shook her head. "I just didn't want to be alone out there."

 _Oh._

They stood awkwardly for another moment, then Lucy seemed to come to a decision and started tugging at her tights. They came down her body all bunched together and stayed in a mess on the floor. Natsu always imagined that she was tidy, one of those girls that picked up their clothes and folded them after shucking them off. In fact, he'd seen the evidence of it at her old apartment, but this morning… she didn't seem to care much about that stuff. Her underwear went, too, a splash of blue amongst the black of her tights.

It took the curtain shrieking back and Lucy stepping in for Natsu to realize just _whatthefuck_ was happening. He still couldn't believe it. Not even when Lucy stepped close to him into the hot spray and breathed a sigh that wasn't quite relief, but an expel of nerves. Her doe eyes flicked up to meet his gaze. Her bottom lip was red and swollen from chewing on it. Natsu's eyes kept on down her body, scrolling over her full curves. Rivulets of water wicked off her skin and got lost in the wash. He was back to being harder than a rock and wished he could hide it.

Lucy took another step closer and reached for his hand, the one he still had hidden behind his back. _That_ was decent libido control. His erection withered. He pushed her hand away with his good one. "Don't, Lucy."

The look she gave him was downright plaintive. "Let me see, Natsu."

"No, it's fine—"

"You can trust me."

He searched her eyes, not that he knew what he was looking for. All he saw there was sadness and concern. He let his muscles relax and allowed her to bring his arm out. Her face didn't change as she took in the scales, though he watched for that, too, actively seeking fear and hate. Lucy was just concerned.

Her fingers traced the triangular ridges. Natsu barely felt it. "Do you feel okay?"

 _Cold. Strange._ _Scared._ "I'm alright."

Lucy said. "A little later, we should get Cheria to look at it, or Wendy if she's awake and feeling up to it."

Natsu knew it wasn't something that could be fixed by a healing spell. He said "Alright," anyway, just to make her feel better.

Satisfied, Lucy kissed his palm.

Natsu wriggled his hand from her grasp. "Don't."

"I'm not afraid."

 _That_ was a lie. He could hear her heart ticking just a bit too quickly. Whether she was lying or not, it didn't stop her from taking up his hand again and kissing it once more. When she was done there, she placed it on her body and encouraged him to grab her. The softness of her breast was interrupted by the ends of her damp hair clinging to her skin. Lucy used both hands to gather it back and properly expose herself. Then she made Natsu grab her other breast, too, and waited for him to do something other than just hold her.

"Lucy—"

"I'm not afraid," she repeated. This time, her voice was steadier.

He squeezed more firmly and rolled his thumbs over the hard tips of her breasts. The girl's eyes fluttered closed. Her heart sped for a new reason. Natsu's joined in and only escalated as Lucy leaned in and kissed him. A press of lips, a teasing of her tongue, and Natsu forgot his self-depreciation and his worry and his fear. After all, this was the most human thing he could do, and he was determined to pour himself into it to feel the way he did before he returned to Magnolia. _No, even before that._ Back before Tartarus attacked. Before he knew just how much he could hurt. Before he lost Igneel and ran away from his family. Before he ditched Lucy and she turned to someone else. Before he was plagued by memories that were stolen away by the less than human _something_ under his skin, that coldness that felt bred-in-the-bone.

Natsu didn't realize he'd pushed Lucy against the limescaled tiles until she sucked in a startled breath and bowed into him to get away from the cold. He let her come for a minute, then pushed her back again and kept her there by grasping her ribs. She got used to the temperature change quickly after that and stopped trying to get away from the wall, or maybe she was just concerned with other things, like his mouth leaving hers to trail down her yellow and brown neck. In a few days, the bruise would be gone and it would be like that never happened. For now, Natsu kissed it and wished he could have been there. He never would have let it happen.

Her collarbone was sharper than it had been in days. The stress was getting to them all. Natsu kissed that, too, and moved further south to the tops of her breasts. Touching her, he didn't give himself time to be nervous. There were other things to concern himself with: Lucy's stalling breath, her fingers clasping on his bare shoulders, and then into his hair, the raised nub he gathered onto his tongue and nibbled and Lucy's responding moan. Yes. _This_ made him feel plenty human.

Natsu allowed his hands to explore. At her hips, Lucy lifted her leg, resting her foot on the edge of the bathtub in invitation. Water off her skin spilled out onto the bathroom floor. Natsu kept her as she was when she tried to adjust, not at all caring that their discarded clothes were getting wet. He released her breast and kissed her again as he slid his fingers over her center and met silky skin. Without clothes between them, he could feel everything, right down to the way her body shivered when he found her nub and teased. Her hips tilted, a motion the dragon slayer was sure she wasn't aware of, and brought her body rubbing against his. On contact, her breath shortened again and her eyes opened wide. She didn't allow her body to fall out of range again, keeping them pressed together. Natsu's heart beat harder than before, to the point where he was afraid it was going to burst through his ribs and out his chest and skitter away. Everything throbbed. He moved his hand and pressed harder against her, sliding inexorably toward her opening.

At his back, Natsu could feel the water's spray hitting his ankles. The hot had run out and it was chilling his already cold back. He didn't dare stop for comfort. Besides, he'd found a new source of heat and it felt more real than anything he'd come into contact with before. Sliding into her was easy. He only paused when a look of realization overtook Lucy. She looked like she was going to tell him to stop. He even thought he knew what the problem was. He waited and waited, feeling her softness all around him.

Lucy let out a breath and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Natsu grabbed her more firmly, taking the invitation for what it was, and edged in deeper, falling into a slow rhythm. He kissed her harder and wished he could feel her damp hair clinging to his changed skin. _Changing_ , he realized when a cold sensation outweighed Lucy's warmth. He broke their kiss so he could watch the scales climb higher up his arm, bursting through his human façade in an attempt to reveal him for what he was: a wolf in sheep's clothes. Lucy followed his gaze. Natsu crushed their mouths together before she could see what he did. He held her securely and rocked into her with more force. Her foot slipped; he caught her, but it was obvious the angle was all wrong.

Natsu pulled out and took a step back into the cold spray; he barely noticed. "Turn around." For a better angle, and because with her face to the bottom of the tub, she couldn't see his slowly changing skin.

Lucy had thrown her earlier uncertainty away and turned so her back was to him. It wasn't the most ideal; he wanted to see her face. _Can't have it all._ He made up for it by kissing her shoulder. Her skin was raised in goose bumps again; that was the only indication Natsu had that the water had truly gotten cold; he could feel nothing. Getting inside like this was more difficult. Lucy took pity on him and held herself open. Back arched, head tilted his way, he realized that maybe he was wrong, he _could_ have it all. Leaning forward to kiss her was awkward and required a team effort, he was glad he did, though. It brought them closer still, in a way he didn't think was possible.

When he was through, he pulled out of her and came in the bottom of the tub.

* * *

On her cot again with Carla at her side, Erza's clambering around roused Wendy from a light slumber. She cracked open her eyes and peered blearily across the room through a veil of blue, her hair twisted around her face. Erza was stretching, as she normally did. And then she was doing push-ups until she was red-faced.

Wendy's stomach growled so loudly, it could be heard over Erza's soft grunts of exertion. The redhead paused, back arched, arms outstretched, the first rays of sunlight streaming through the dirty window igniting her fire-red hair, and found Wendy. "Good morning."

"Morning," Wendy whispered. She needn't worry, Carla was shuffling before she'd said a word, and Cheria followed shortly after.

Erza spoke more normally. "Are you hungry, Wendy?"

 _Starving._ And thirsty. All the things she couldn't really think about last night because her head had been everywhere _else._ She glanced at Cheria and smiled wanly.

"Wendy?"

"Oh." Wendy's cheeks heated. "Yes."

"I'll get you something," Carla said sleepily. She climbed over Wendy's body and stumbled toward the fridge.

"You're tired, Carla, I can get it," Wendy protested.

"Nonsense." Carla waved her off, sounding more like herself as the seconds ticked by. She returned with an apple, a huge hunk of cheese, a piece of breath slathered with jam, and a tall glass of water. Wendy went for the water first, trying to shake the raisin-like feeling in her stomach, then wolfed down the food.

"Not so fast," Carla warned. "You'll make yourself sick."

Wendy barely listened, only taking a moment to breathe before she was back at it again.

Erza finished her push-ups and said, "I'm going to shower and change, then I'm going to gather everyone together so we can formulate an action plan."

Wendy remembered her late-night rendezvous with a certain water mage and felt just as sick as Carla warned of. "I want to help out."

"You're fine in here, recovering," Carla said.

Wendy ignored her and directed all of her attention to Erza, knowing she was the weakest link. "I can gather people up while you shower if you tell me where they're staying."

Erza looked like she was about to protest. Carla beat her to it. "Did you not just hear me, Wendy? You're still pale, so don't tell me you feel fine, and what if something happens again?" Carla said in a shrill voice.

"Carla is right," Erza said after a moment.

Wendy looked at her in disbelief. "What was all that stuff last night about me helping out then?"

Erza faltered. "Wendy…" She sighed, "Forgive me. I still blame myself for what happened. I want to keep you safe, but you're right. You're not a child, and I shouldn't be treating you like one, either. I do insist on taking someone with you, though."

"I'll go with her," Cheria said. "We'll be okay together."

"You've all gone mad," Carla said dispassionately. "I'm coming, too."

"I actually need you to find Lily and the others," Erza said, catching Wendy's horrified look and coming through, even though she didn't know what she was coming through _on_.

"We can go together—"

"They're just across the hall," Erza replied. "This is the fastest way. We'll meet back here in ten minutes. Be quick."

Wendy rose on still wobbly legs and dressed, doing her best not to look at Carla's hurt expression. _I'll explain things to her._ When she could, _without_ Juvia's help, with any luck.

* * *

It was so cold in the hallway, Wendy wrapped her arms around her body and shivered. "Holy."

Cheria rubbed her own arms, encouraging warmth into them. It didn't help much. "Crazy. It must have gotten really cold last night or something and they haven't turned the heat on. Do you want to go back for a sweater?"

Wendy _was_ in a sweater, an overlarge one with a huge white bow stencilled on the black fabric over her breast. "It's alright." Not only was this the best she had, the desire to avoid another confrontation with Carla was stronger than the want to be warmer.

"We'll be quick," Cheria said. Then she asked a hard question. "You want to talk to Juvia to ask her not to say anything, don't you?"

Wendy squirmed. "I just…"

"It's okay, Wendy."

Wendy could see that it was _not._ Cheria was hurt. She grabbed the girl's hand, a motion that had always been easy before but was now somehow _so much harder_ , and squeezed. "Just until I know what to say." _And how to say it._ And everything else in between. She never knew like one action could make her life so infinitely more _complex_. Just imagining the cascading effect that one kiss had made her half-wish she'd never done it. And made her want to do it again, because when Cheria's mouth was on hers last night, it felt like it was worth all of the turmoil and confusion in her mind, the voice telling her _things aren't supposed to be like this between two girls,_ and the one volleying back saying, _I don't care. I like it._

"I don't know if we have to say anything," Cheria responded in a voice that was heavy with despondence.

Wendy turned a pleading look her way. "Please. I just need time… it's—I didn't think—I've never—" With each word she grew more flustered.

Cheria softened. "It's okay, Wendy. I understand. We'll ask Juvia to be quiet and we'll just… do things the way you want."

Wendy let go of a large part of her anxiety. They turned the corner, though, and it was right back in place. The ground in front of room twenty-two was frozen solid. The walls, the ceiling, and the door, too, were all encased in a thick layer of ice. Wendy's heart went into her throat.

Cheria voiced what Wendy could not. "What the heck?"

Wendy smelled blood and bile and knew that something was very, very wrong. She pushed past the girl less carefully than she would have liked. On the ice, her feet slipped and she went down, her muscles still not cooperating. Hitting hard didn't keep her there, she was back up in a moment and scrabbling through the frozen door. She had to turn sideways to squeeze through, only able to coax it a few inches before a bubble of ice on the floor stopped it up.

While all of the lights were off and the room was facing the wrong direction for the sun to trickle through, there was _enough_ light. Inside was how Wendy imagined the innards of a static snow globe looked, frozen completely, utterly still, a strange otherworldly quality to it.

Wendy searched and found Gray first, a swell of ice around his collapsed body. His cheek had been bleeding; the blood had frozen. It was hard to tell exactly how long ago. The whole scene was peculiar, the half-mad and furious expression on his face, his slacked mouth, but his skin was what struck Wendy as the oddest. The black smudge on his arm that was supposed to be his devil slayer's mark was shot through with fine white lines, his skin a black mirror that someone had taken a tiny hammer to and rapped just hard enough that it exploded in tiny spider-webbed cracks.

At first, she thought he was dead. Then she saw the minute puff of condensed breath leave his cracked mouth. She fell to her knees and called up every ounce of healing magic she could, and some she couldn't, and did her best to tug Gray out of whatever hold he was trapped in.

"Wendy." Cheria's voice carried a heavy weight. Wendy couldn't help but split her concentration after that. She found her friend standing over Juvia. The water mage was slouched against the wall, legs collapsed beneath her like they just wouldn't hold her anymore. Her neck had been torn open by a vicious bite; Wendy could see the teeth marks from where she knelt. Again, the blood was frozen. In looking at her, Wendy found the source of the smell of vomit. Juvia was covered in it.

"Help her!" _Is that me,_ Wendy wondered upon hearing that strained tenor.

Cheria's magic filled the air. Wendy watched and was still watching when a hand closed over her forearm. Her scream was honest and heartfelt, full of shock and fear that lasted well past the time she identified Gray as the culprit. Awake, he looked at her with eyes that held as much fury as she'd ever seen.

"Juvia." His voice cracked harshly.

"C—Cheria's helping her," Wendy stammered.

Gray squeezed her wrist. "The demon?"

Wendy convinced herself to look away from Gray and searched the room. "There's only us."

Gray gritted his teeth. Before her eyes, Wendy watched the black blotch stretch up his arm to his shoulder and over his chin. With it came the spider-web cracks. He grimaced with its expanding foothold as though every centimeter it gained was as painful as breaking a bone.

Gray released her. "Move."

"You're hurt," Wendy protested weakly. "Let me help you."

Gray pushed her out of the way when she wouldn't do it on her own and staggered to his feet. Wendy was right, he was hurt, but now his rib was bruised and not broken, the gash on his cheek scabbed and not an open cut. He felt like garbage, a half-festered wound without his magic and _with._ At least he could feel it now, however faint and strange. It was as hungry as it had ever been and it only wanted one thing: END. He didn't need to glance at Juvia to gather conviction. He did anyway. Half-frozen, soaked in bile, exposed. Used and damaged. He reached for her through the connection he'd made and felt nothing.

He couldn't entertain what that meant.

He couldn't not.

Against Wendy's protest, he left to expose the pretender for what he was and get retribution for Juvia, stopping only long enough to tug a pair of black jeans on and his boots.


	26. Chapter 26

Out of the shower, Natsu tried his hand at hiding in plain sight as he dried quickly using the ratty towel the Briar left in their room. To keep his arm hidden, he worked every trick he knew, turning his back to Lucy, hunching in on himself, using the towel as a barrier. Too late he realized that she could still see him perfectly fine through the mirror, and he wasn't fooling a goddamn soul. Her eyes were on his skin, on where the scales had shot up past his elbow and were now making the long climb for his shoulder. And then what? Up his neck? Down his chest? What would be the next thing to surrender its humanity? _Traitor,_ Natsu thought unfairly as he looked at himself in the mirror. It wasn't his body's fault.

Lucy broke the silence. "That thing is spreading."

Having her while she faced the wall had only delayed the inevitable. Natsu imagined what Lucy thought it was. A sickness? A bacterial infection that settled in because he didn't keep the wound clean? The truth, because she was one of the cleverest people he knew: END breaking through his skin? Without offering an explanation, he pulled on his pants with one hand that barely felt and one that shook and buttoned them. Finished in record time, he made to escape. Lucy came into his space and cupped his cheek, stopping him up short. Somehow, despite the blistering shower, she was still warmer than he was. It wasn't right. If she noticed, she was too polite to say. Wrapped in her own off-white towel, she stood on tiptoe for a kiss he was reluctant to return until he was doing it. Then he couldn't seem to stop himself. She was soft and almost familiar now. And he felt he needed that.

"We'll figure it out," Lucy said between their lips. "And everything will be okay."

 _There_ was her optimism. Scarce of late, he was starting to wonder if it had ever been there at all or if he'd embellished the Lucy from his memory. Though he wasn't quite able to share her views, he put on a face and affirmed, "Everything will be fine." As soon as he made good on his promise to Zeref. _You just need to remember. Cut the thread and you'll know_. He would never. There had to be another way.

Lucy kissed him one final time, then wriggled out of his grasp again and entered the room, leaving him where he was. Natsu looked after her for long seconds that bled into minutes, not doing anything except thinking about not much of anything. Really, that turned out to be a lot of something. Zeref. And about this new coldness he carried. The scales. What they meant. The dreams. Everything he hadn't seen yet. Truths so true, he could only store them in memory and return when he felt he had some processing power.

 _Do something. Something productive. Move. Find Happy. Make sure he's okay_. _Find your resolve. Go bury Master Makarov. Then figure out how to tell Lucy you're leaving her again._ And after? See if he could discard his humanity and find the beast he'd spent the last hour trying to smother.

Panic was a near thing. _Move._

He was just pushing open the bathroom door when he heard the outer one burst open and Lucy's responding gasp. His heart went straight into his throat, his adrenaline spiked, and his fear. Paralysis tried to take him.

Lucy's voice met his ears. "Gray! You scared me." It sounded like it, too. The other man's name warbled coming out of her mouth.

 _Gray._ It took Natsu a second for that to sink in. And then he was hit with a sensation that was more than fear. _Jealousy,_ he realized. That ugly little monster he'd managed to avoid for most of his life. And now he couldn't seem to get away from it. _Go. One foot. Then the other_ , because it seemed like he'd forgotten what it was to be in motion _._ He left the bathroom behind.

Out in the main room, the air was frigid. Unnaturally so. Natsu's breath condensed, his skin crawled, not just with the cold but a sense of dread that made him want to both run and fight. He understood the second urge, but not the first. He never ran.

Despite the need to figure out what the _hell_ Gray was doing there, Natsu found Lucy first. It seemed like he was always looking for her. Across the room, her back against the heat register, the morning's first rays playing in her wet hair, she held tights and a pair of socks to her heart in a very startled kind of fashion. She'd only managed to get half dressed before she was interrupted, sort of covered but mostly not in a pair of white cotton underwear and a light blue long-sleeved shirt stenciled with white stars.

"Gray?"

Natsu followed her gaze and found the other man. As usual, Gray was half-naked—there must have been something going around—and undeniably beaten. Most of his face was bruised blue, there was an old cut on his cheek, his ribs were colourful and swollen, and the black mark that he'd taken from his father covered more than half of his body. It looked _wrong,_ though. Shot through with white cracks. Ice gone rotten.

"What happened?" Lucy asked.

Gray ignored her completely and spat Natsu's name through gritted teeth. His anger was tangible and only skyrocketed when he studied the dragon slayer and realized that the black on Natsu's arm wasn't anything natural. "It's true." Conviction and shock merged in the perfect symphony of accusation.

Natsu's mouth went dry. The urge to hide the evidence was foolish. And undeniable. He edged his arm behind his back as naturally as he could and tried to think of something to say. Lucy wasn't at such a loss for words. "What's true?"

Gray deigned to look at her. "Get away from him, Lucy."

"Get away from him?" She looked the right amount of indignant but Natsu could smell the fear on her.

Gray said, "He's END. He's Zeref's strongest demon. Zeref's _dog_." To Natsu he said, "You make me _sick."_ And he wasn't lying. His face was as pale as parchment, slicked in sweat. He kept clenching and unclenching his fist. With every breath, the spider's web that was his devil slayer's mark expanded a little further. His jaw tightened with every inch gained. "Do you know the pain you've caused? How many lives have been lost because of you?"

Gray's fury was only mounting. In its wake, Natsu's scales took over a little more, and more, and— "You should leave."

"Leave? Oh, no. Do you know how much you've taken from me?" Though Gray originally thought the question was rhetorical, he answered it anyway. "Everyone. My parents, my master. Juvia."

Silence.

Then, " _Speak_ , Natsu. Can you say nothing to defend yourself?"

Like he _wanted_ Natsu to say something convincing. To change his mind. Again, it was only Lucy that could find her voice. "Juvia? What happened? Gray?" She'd forgotten her state of dress and shock and embraced the situation. "And why is your mark like that? What's wrong?"

Gray was suddenly so furious that spittle flew from his mouth. His fists were clenched so hard, the tendons stuck out on his arm. "What's wrong is that Natsu's been lying to us this whole time, Lucy. Did you not hear me? He's END _."_

"Calm down, Gray. This is crazy." She said the right words, there was an uncertainty to her, though. She kept glancing at Natsu's arm, chewing her cheek, _dripping_ worry and fear. She wasn't saying how unafraid she was now. "This is Natsu we're talking about, he's not a demon, he's—"

Natsu watched Lucy's words slide over the devil slayer. He watched Gray take another step into the room. He watched pain flit over the man's face. And then Natsu was rolling out of the way as the floor erupted in crystal clear spikes sharper than nails. The spell started out as devil slayer's magic and fizzled into maker, but Gray's intent was clear. Natsu didn't waste time screaming like Lucy did. He was up and edging toward mindlessness, angry for more things than he could rightly name. Fire came to his hand.

"That's better. If you can't speak, fight," Gray said and attacked again, swifter than he'd ever been. His magic came in fits and spurts, devil slayer strength one minute, maker the next. The sword he summoned from thin air looked as hard as diamonds, as sharp as razors, and then it was just ice. Good thing, too, because when Natsu clamped his hands around it, halting its downward swoop that would have cleaved him in two, it didn't bite through his skin like it was supposed to, it melted in the heat of his fire. Gray's responding growl shook Natsu to his core. Still mostly lagging behind, he missed the part where Gray released the melting pommel of his sword and swung a fist coated in ice. The dragon slayer took it in the jaw and saw stars. He backpedaled, then retaliated more quickly than Gray could block. The man's cheek split open all over again and bled generously. He managed to get his hands up to fend off Natsu's next blow. And then he back-stepped and got some space between them.

Several feet apart again, Natsu was able to see that Gray's devil slayer's mark expanded a little more, so now half of his face was black. The spider web's fracture lines increased. The power held beneath pulsed and manifested itself in the real world in the form of a cold that made Natsu's skin _ache_ so badly that for a moment, he felt nauseated. It rolled over him in a wave and passed, the effect it left behind was undeniable, though. Scales burst from his skin, up his shoulder, his neck, and down across his other arm.

"Stop it," Lucy said from somewhere far away. She didn't sound exasperated like she normally did when they fought. She was scared. Instead of dousing the tension, her fear helped fuel Natsu's resolve. He gathered cold and unfamiliar power and hit Gray again. On contact, he felt the presence under his skin push harder to be let out. The fracture Zeref left him with spread wider, he got colder, his fire burned more violently until the dingy carpet was smouldering and the ceiling was blackening and the fire alarm was wailing and Gray was spitting curses and convictions and gathering up a huge breath of air, condensing his power into a breath attack. However impossible, Natsu imagined he heard crack whatever was containing Gray's power. He certainly felt it, another nauseating wave of magic that was meant to dig beneath his skin and pick apart whatever was fueling his fury.

"Stop," Lucy said again just as Gray released his magic, a colder than Hell breath that froze everything it touched. Natsu didn't need to be told that it was life-stealing, he could feel it somewhere deep in his bones. It was coming for him. And suddenly Lucy was right in the way. She'd dropped her tights and socks at some point and now she held out her hands like that would be enough to catch the spell and stop it. For Natsu, time slowed. He saw the moment of realization hit Gray, and the horror that took him. The moment he tried to call the spell back but could not, a force of nature in its own right.

 _Cut the thread. Cut the thread. Cut the thread._ He didn't think there'd be enough left of Lucy when Gray's spell was through to even hold her like Zeref held Valentina. _No. Do something_.

The fracture tore wider and the beast made another debut. It was far too late, though, the spell hit.

* * *

Wendy let her magic go and wiped a hand over her brow. It came away damp with sweat. Healing hadn't taken so much out of her in a long time. She knew part of it was because she was still recovering from her own injuries, but mostly it was because Juvia's lungs had stopped taking in oxygen and her heart was beating its last when Cheria started. It was so much harder to call someone back from the very brink of death. Even now, the water mage was breathing, but shallowly. So, so shallowly.

Cheria did most of the work, picking up the slack where Wendy left off, bringing more and more colour to Juvia's cheeks, and didn't slow until the girl began breathing on her own. Wendy stood, her magic all but useless now, and slipped her way over the icy floor to the washroom, determined to still be useful in some way. From the rack over the bath tub she grabbed a faded green towel and turned to the sink. The taps were coated in frost and the water coming out of the pipes did so in between great blasts of air. It too was icy cold. The temperature didn't truly matter, Wendy decided. This was just a temporary fix between this and getting Juvia back to their room so they could take better care of her there.

Out in the main room again, she went to Juvia's side and folded away the ruined blanket and started cleaning the sick and blood off Juvia's face and neck. She had no response until Wendy touched the bite mark on her throat, then Juvia's eyes fluttered and a weak whine came from her mouth. It was still several seconds before she opened her blue orbs. Wendy made sure she had a smile primed despite her surety that Juvia wasn't truly looking at her. As she suspected, Juvia did not return the gesture.

"Wendy…"

"Hey, Juvia." Wendy brushed the towel over Juvia's bare chest, cleaning up the last of the mess. She'd need a shower, but this was good enough for now.

"What…?"

"Don't try to talk. You were hurt. Cheria's taking care of you, though," Wendy promised. She rose and searched the room. It took a while, but eventually she found what she was looking for: clothing. A black dress that was also covered in ice crystals. Wendy picked it up and shook it out. She helped herself to a duffle bag at the end of the bed next. It was Gray's, she was sure. She chose a black hoody at random and returned with both.

"Can we dress her?"

Cheria stopped her healing efforts and rocked back on her heels. "Yeah. I think she's okay for now."

"Help me then," Wendy commanded, channeling a bit of Erza as best she could.

Juvia's movements were uncoordinated and choppy, however, with every passing second more of the dullness seemed to leave her eyes. As it dissipated, her breathing elevated. So did her franticness. "Where is Gray-sama?"

"Relax," Wendy said as she slid Juvia's arm through the arm hole of her dress and got it over her head. Juvia's hair clung to her forehead. She was sweaty even though it was so cold in the room, her teeth chattered.

"I need to see him," Juvia said. "Right now. I need to see him. Where is he?"

"Juvia, calm down," Wendy replied. "You shouldn't be—" She trailed off as a gash on Juvia's cheek formed and started to spill blood. Her lip went next, red streaming down her face. Juvia sucked in a startled and pained breath. A bruise bloomed on her chin. She jolted and grabbed her ribs next, then curled in on herself and started to cry.

Wendy grabbed the girl's wrist. "What's happening?"

Juvia wasn't in any sort of state to answer. Wendy turned her eyes to Cheria. Cheria looked on, wide-eyed and scared.

Juvia wailed. Wendy's heart went into her throat. She reached for her magic again though it was an almost dry well, and tried to fix what she could. Cheria joined her. Somewhere down the hall, a blast shook the motel to its core. Wendy shoved it aside, believing that this was more important. Juvia had other ideas.

Wild, she pushed Wendy aside and lurched to her feet. Half vertical, she stumbled barefooted out of the door, moving faster than Wendy thought she could. The motel rumbled again, and then north wall burst out in a swirl of flames. Juvia's skin seared. She screamed, but didn't stop.

* * *

Erza was stepping out of the shower, a towel wrapped around her breasts, when the hole-in-the-wall window opened and a visitor wearing a dark cowl slipped through without ceremony. There was no containing the startled squeal that took her. It fizzled out in a weak gasp of breath when she realized it was Jellal. He wasted no time in saying hello. He grabbed her around the waist and tugged her _through_ where the wall had been only seconds ago. Now there was only broken brick and dust and splintered wood. Freefalling, she clutched her towel, she clutched Jellal's cloak, and she waited for the ground. In the seconds it took her to fall two stories, she was nearly cooked by an errant ball of flame. On its heels was a blast of air so cold, her hair froze.

Then there was cracked concrete. Hitting it knocked the wind out of her chest and Jellal's. She lay there, dazed. It passed with the groan and crack of the motel collapsing. She gathered the dexterity to look over her shoulder and watch it fold in on itself like failed bread. The culprits emerged from the dust. She wouldn't have recognized them, though, if it wasn't for the clash of fire and ice.

With her first breath she asked, "What the fuck?" _Wendy_. And Carla and everyone _else_ that was in that motel. She hoped that no one was hurt.

"We have to stop them." Jellal pushed Erza off his chest unceremoniously.

That was all the initiative she needed to scrabble to her feet and don some proper clothes. And her armour while she was at it. Heart Kreuz was her forever backup, but as the surrounding area to the north was hit first with enough fire to melt and fuse metal, then blasted with cold so bitter that the same metal broke apart, she wondered if adamantium would be better.

"Hurry," Jellal snapped. He was already moving and there was no time.

Erza rushed to catch up, arms pumping, leg muscles straining to keep her level with his longer steps. "What's going on?"

Jellal spat a quick and inadequate explanation. "Meredy and Gray made a sensory link last night. Something's preventing her from breaking it. He's killing her."

Erza ran faster.

* * *

Stuffed into a box Lucy had never _considered_ a coffin but couldn't _stop_ thinking of as that way now, she breathed stale air and pushed frantically at the oak grains. Caught in Gray's breath attack, she was thrown for a wild ride, spun so quickly that she was dizzy. Then she hit something hard and unforgiving. A wall. The box—faintly, she knew it was Horologium—splintered. The wall gave out. She was spinning again, faster than before this time. Down, down. Gravity was calling and it was saying the ground missed her.

She hit hard enough that Horologium cracked and spilled his cargo on the pavement. Lucy kept spinning long after she was free of his body, stopping up short against a brick wall. Her head was protected by a warm body slamming into place behind her seconds before she collided and was split in two like a melon. She had the opportunity to look up and see through all the grey air shot through with sunrays that it was Loke that had materialized at the last second when he realized that Horologium failed.

Dust drifted to the ground. Screams filled the air. And then the smashing continued. Without looking, Lucy knew Natsu and Gray and brought the fight outside. Her heart beat faster. She pushed herself out of Loke's lap and almost threw up on his feet; she was so disoriented and dizzy.

Loke followed her upright and grabbed her arms, keeping her away from the ground again when she started to go down. "Are you okay?"

Lucy took in the first dust-filled breath since she was thrown from Horologium. Her lungs hurt. "I'm fine. We have to stop them." She wriggled from his grasp and lurched toward the fighting. It was hard to see through all of the fine particles in the air, the smoke and the bits of ice spray, but every now and again fire would act as a beacon, pulling her toward Natsu. _Natsu_? A tremor took her recalling the burst of scales, the coldness that filled his eyes.

 _I'm not afraid._ Those words felt much hollower now than they had as she was standing in the tub, gearing herself up for something that seemed so mild now in the face of _this_ calamity.

Loke grabbed her wrist, tugging her up short. "You can't go over there."

"I have to." Lucy twisted out of his grasp and was on the move again.

Loke growled out something that she missed over the din of a building smashing apart.

* * *

Erza was hit with the aftereffects of a spell that made her skin burn. She felt like a crab stuffed into a boiling pot in her armour. She switched it out for her flame empress. It didn't truly save her from the heat. It helped, though. Not that it did much for the responding cold. She entered the battleground as she did always: with abandon. When she was moving quickly, she wasn't giving herself time to worry. She wasn't giving fear a foothold. She was _doing_ , she was _acting_. The only time she ever felt more alive was when Jellal was touching her. That was a long way off, though.

Through a cloud of smoke, she saw her quarry. Natsu, bent-backed and grabbing his bleeding side, somehow still furious and devoted, Gray, upright and righteously angry. Both were focused on what they were doing, neither noticed her approach, or the destruction or the screaming around them, Erza would bet. Faintly, she catalogued Natsu's bare arms. And his hands. Neither was right. _Not quite human_ , her brain supplied when she could not make the pieces line up. And Gray. He was a mess of pale skin mixed black laced with spider web fractures.

Erza's heart turned with something that she, at her least brave, would call fear. Quashing it like a bug, she strode forward and made it there in time to deflect Natsu's coming punch, and Gray's vicious response. Both of her palms went numb with the impact. In one hand was cold, the other hot. Erza clenched both fists and held them, pushing against the driving force with all her might. It was barely enough to keep them at bay.

"Enough," Erza said. No one seemed to hear her or even notice that she was there. Gray pushed against her, determined to get at Natsu, and Natsu made to tear out of her grasp. In the most dangerous way she had, Erza squeezed their knuckles until she felt their hand bones grind together and hissed, "Stop."

It didn't seem to matter. Gray's devil slayer's magic rose up, as poisoned as it had ever been. Erza attempted to draw breath and couldn't. Distantly, she heard Jellal call her name. She felt one of his spells rise. She wondered if he would let it loose and risk hurting Meredy, or if he would hold it and watch her get flattened by Gray's magic. She clenched her teeth. " _Stop and listen._ You're hurting Meredy, Gray. She can feel everything through your sensory link."

Gray's responding (and incomprehensible) snarl was shortened to a weak grunt as a new figure separated herself from the settling dust. Her sapphire hair, even caked in drywall film, was unmistakable. He fixed his gaze on her just to be sure. She walked unevenly, staggering more than drifting as she usually did, and there was blood on her skin. But there was no mistake.

"Juvia."

"Gray-sama!" Her rising voice and Erza's joined response, a lift of her head in Juvia's direction, affirmed that he wasn't hallucinating. The closer she swayed, the more clearly he could see her. Her cheek was split and puffy. Like his. Her knuckles were raw and red. Like his. She clutched her ribs. Like he wanted to. Erza's words finally trickled through his rage. _You're hurting Meredy._ And Juvia. Juvia, who was no longer lying limp against the wall, soaked in blood and vomit. This time, when he prodded their connection he felt everything. Her fear and her doubt and her worry.

"Gray-sama, stop.."

Her words resonated in his mind. The magic he held died in his hands, along with his will to fight. His devil slayer's mark shrunk so fast he swayed back, dizzy and nauseous all over again. Erza let him go; Juvia came for him, taking up the redhead's place. She still smelled vinegary. Gray didn't care. He clutched her to his chest.

* * *

With Gray's shrinking devil slayer's mark, the pressure Natsu felt digging into the fracture inside his chest eased. Like someone flipped a switch, the cold he'd been courting shrank and shrank, taking with it his new scales, until only his right palm was blackened. He felt hollow like he did before, standing over Fairy Tail's ruined guild hall. Exhausted. And aching. This time, when he wrenched out of Erza's grasp, she couldn't keep him.

"Natsu!" Erza called. "Where are you going?"

 _To find Lucy._ What was left of her. _Do you really think you're going to find anything at all?_ Hit with the full strength of a spell like that… Anger came again, so potent he was choking on it. The beast that lived in that fracture peered through the darkness, longing to step out into the light, if Natsu would let it. He bit his tongue until it hurt and imagined a scenario where he had any sort of control over it. It wasn't his. Not at all. He'd be a fool to imagine it was. It felt wilder than the Ethernano he'd dared to eat in the Tower of Heaven, more dangerous than the void Hades banished him into. More frightening than all of the Tartarus demons consolidated into one beast. Even more poisonous than Achnologia, whom Natsu often thought of as fear itself. Clutching his ribs didn't stop the tremor rolling through him. it didn't hide it from anyone else, either. He could _feel_ Gray tense and wondered if they'd start again.

 _You heard Erza. He's linked with Meredy. Calm. Be calm._ Sucking in breath after breath after breath didn't do _anything._ And then he heard her voice.

"I don't _care,_ Loke."

"You _should_. Listen to me."

A frustrated grunt. "Close, Gate of the Lion."

That wasn't enough to convince Natsu, he'd seen plenty of girls as of late that he imagined to be Lucy. Her scent came to him, the one that was particular to her. He stalled and huffed. Strawberry and dirt and celestial elements. She stepped out of the dust next, damp hair no longer golden, but caked in filth as they all were.

She identified him a millisecond later. "Natsu!"

Her voice was the splash of cold water he needed to put a damper on the beast within. Natsu watched her skitter over rocks and other debris. She didn't seem to care that she wasn't dressed. She didn't seem to care that her feet were getting battered by broken bricks and glass. She didn't seem to care that she'd seen the creature he was. She approached with abandon and stopped only when she was leaning into him and examining. Cool fingers pressed into his sore cheek, his swollen lip, his black and blue chest. Natsu was more damaged than he'd ever been after a fight with Gray, and he'd never felt it less.

Lucy wicked away the blood at his lip. "Are you okay?"

He caught her wrist and leaned away. "I'm fine." Just cut loose and feeling bland. Detached. Except for fear. That was in sharp focus.

Another figure came out of the rubble, a short man with a balding head and a cap of tightly curled red hair. His nose was redder than a cherry, as was his throat. He opened his mouth and Natsu understood that he wasn't drunk or ill, he was _furious_. He only glanced at Lucy in her peculiar garb briefly, too mad to think that seeing girls in their underwear was strange. "What have you done to my motel?"

Natsu didn't know what to say. _What does it look like?_ That'd go over well.

"You've ruined me." The owner didn't need a response. "Everyone said, don't let Fairy Tail stay. You won't have a place left. But I decided to take the chance. What is a man to do in this economy?" A vein popped out on his forehead. " _Lose everything,_ " he answered himself. With the last word, he gave his frustration a physical outlet and lobbed a rock their way. Natsu wasn't fast enough to dodge it; in fact, he didn't even see it in the man's hand until it was in the air, he was too out of it. It hit him in the chest and bounced off. He supposed it hurt on some level. Or it would, eventually.

"Hey!" Lucy raged. "Don't—"

The man stooped and picked up another piece of his ruined motel. A hand closed around his wrist and squeezed before he could throw it, punishing him until he dropped his prize.

A new voice said, "You'll be reimbursed for your losses." The dust cleared a little more. Gajeel looked annoyed, as always.

The motel's owner wasn't intimidated; he was too angry for that. "And who's going to pay for it?"

"The Magic Council." Gajeel threw around the name like it was commonplace.

"The council. Why would they?"

"Because this accident happened while we were conducting an investigation," Gajeel replied smoothly.

"Accident? I saw them fighting." He pointed accusingly between Natsu and Gray.

"Sure. Now shut your mouth and go about your day," Gajeel warned.

" _Go about my day_. This is a joke, right?"

Gajeel didn't crack a smile. "Does it look like I'm laughing? The council will handle this. You'll be back in business soon. Until then, find something to keep you busy and keep your mouth shut."

The man snorted. "Even if that story _did_ fly, you expect me to believe your part of the council? Look at you, you're—"

Gajeel dug in his pocket and came out with a badge that Natsu couldn't read at this distance. "Yeah, I do expect you to believe that I'm part of that. But please, go ahead, tell me what you think I am. Too much of a punk? Too dumb? Too—"

The motel owner's face blanked.

"You're scaring him, Gajeel," came Levy's voice. Natsu felt Lucy quiver beside him. He dared to shoot a look her way. Her eyes were bright with tears. She held them all in, stubborn to the last.

Gajeel shoved the motel owner back a few paces. "Good. Guy like him deserves a good fright."

"Gajeel—"

Gajeel barked, "I've had two buildings dropped on my head in as many days, Levy. I'm not in the mood for his attitude." To the owner he said, "Know what? Suddenly, I'm not feeling so generous. Consider the offer retracted."

"What?" the owner squawked.

"He didn't mean it," Levy interrupted.

Natsu stopped listening, distracted by another presence. Wendy, Cheria and Carla coming from the rubble-filled square, and then Happy dropped from the sky, Lily at his side. Looking at him, the dragon slayer had a sudden urge to grab the cat and crush him to his chest. He suppressed it.

"Natsu?" Happy looked at him with concern. "Are you alright? You don't look so good."

Natsu imagined smiling and laughing it off like he normally would. His stomach was too curdled for that, his chest too cold, the knowledge that Gray was just steps away, that Gray knew his secret, that Gray had the power to end what he'd become before he carried out his mission.

"Hello?" Happy sent and incredulous look his way. "Are you sick?"

 _Say something._ Natsu felt tongue-tied.

"Erza." Gajeel had stopped arguing with Levy, dismissed the motel's owner, and now turned his attention to the redhead. His interruption seemed to distract Happy from his inquisition. Blissfully. Natsu followed the cat's gaze and saw Erza was trying to slink away, her hand tucked into...

Natsu squinted. The wind shifted, telling him what his eyes would not.

Jellal's.

Erza's shoulders got stiff. And then she was running, dragging Jellal along behind her.

"Erza!" Gajeel's voice cracked like a whip.

She wouldn't have slowed for him. The only thing that put a halt on her escape was Jellal digging his heels into the ground. She was pulled up so abruptly she fell. Her face turned white, her broken fingers bending the wrong way. Cursing followed next, a long, colourful stream that was both impressive and slightly intimidating. Jellal picked her up, his apologies the only thing blurring out her cusses.

Gajeel approached, boots digging into the debris-filled ground. "Running doesn't look good, Scarlet."

Erza faced him, defiance on her sweaty and pale face. Lucy voiced what Natsu was thinking. "What the hell is happening?"

Levy spoke. "Jellal's still wanted by the Magic Council. Me and Gajeel have been tailing his group for awhile, but they've been elusive."

" _You're_ part of the Magic Council?" Natsu asked. "For real?" He supposed he thought Gajeel was putting on an act or something.

"Gajeel's head of the Magic Enforcement Unit," Levy said. "And I'm an officer."

"Fuck off," Natsu said, for a moment putting aside everything fucked up for some good old fashioned disbelief. Levy he could believe, she was as straight as they came, but, "Gajeel?"

"Yep." Levy's smile was small and genuine and reminiscent of everything that Fairy Tail used to be. It made Natsu's heart _hurt_. And then it was gone. "Gajeel…" She closed the space between them, entering the tense situation. Natsu strained his ears to hear what was said. Gajeel's deep timbre was the only one that carried any good.

"—extenuating circumstances. As soon as this is cleared up, though, you gotta come in, Jellal. Nothing personal."

Natsu was wrong, an angry Erza spoke loudly enough as well. "You can try to arrest him. But you'll have me to go through."

"Taking a stance like that, you're abetting a criminal, Erza," Gajeel warned. "That could be bad for you, too."

Lucy slipped her hand out of his grasp, distracted with the appearance of Virgo. Natsu kept her in his periphery while he stepped closer. His movements attracted Gray's attention. Twenty feet away, the devil slayer watched him like a hawk, breathing as of yet contained fury. Natsu knew what he was looking for: END. How much longer would he wait patiently, holding a shivering Juvia? He was satiated for now, but what would set him off next?

 _You can't procrastinate. You have to find Zeref and act fast._ He was all indecision. Fear. Where was the _conviction_?

Jellal's voice brought him back to a matter that was still pressing but not nearly so dire. At least to Natsu. "Don't listen to her. She doesn't know what she's saying."

"I know perfectly well what I'm saying."

Jellal waved her off. "Hysterical."

"When did Jellal get so brave?" Natsu whispered.

"We call that stupid, not brave," Happy said. "Maybe he got hit in the head?"

"He's about to be…" Lily chimed.

"Overlook what she's saying. She's not thinking straight."

Erza, predictably, planted two hands on his shoulder and _pushed_ him back. "No, I'm—"

Jellal stepped in front of her again. "She's been strange since Wendy was attacked. Out of her mind. Really, I was the one pursuing her, not the other way around. Any interaction she had with me was on my behest. She never participated in my happenings, she never contributed to any illegal activity. If she says differently, she's lying."

"The less you say, the less I know," Gajeel said over Erza's outraged protests. "We got more important things to think about right now. Has anyone seen the Strausses or Laxus and his team?"

"I saw them heading toward the guild hall early this morning," Happy answered.

Gajeel nodded. "Good. We should all find some place to hole up while we figure out what the _hell_ is happening. I got a report from the council early this morning that there was a force marching across Fiore, heading this way. Every town they pass through they decimate. No survivors."

Lucy, more properly dressed in a pair of tights and not just her underwear, came to Natsu and clutched his hand hard, fingers digging into his new scales.

Gajeel said, "The council thinks with all the activity happening here in Magnolia, they're headed this way. Our own soldiers are getting geared up, but it'll take days for them to get here. We're what's going to stop them if our suspicions are correct."

Natsu's stomach flopped as his dream came back to him. There was no doubt in his mind that those soldiers were Zeref's. _And they're coming for you. So many people are dying._

"Can you think of any place to gather?" Levy raised her voice, addressing the whole group.

It was Jellal that answered. "My people are gathered at the old school. It'll be large enough to accommodate us all."

"I'll get the Strausses," Lily offered.

"I'll go with you," Happy said.

"And I'll head to the guard house," Gajeel said. "Let them know what's happening. Levy, Erza, you're with me. Lily, help Jellal get everyone to the school first to make sure there's no more incidents," he looked pointedly at Gray and Natsu, "then start looking for the others. Cheria, Wendy… Get those two idiots healed up, and anyone else that needs it."

Wendy was pale when she nodded, not looking much like she wanted to heal anyone, but also not arguing about it, either. She would work until she was dead.

Gray stood taller beneath Juvia's weight. "I'm not going anywhere with him." His finger pointed accusingly at Natsu.

"You are because I say you are," Gajeel replied, stealing Natsu's chance to respond.

"Who made you in charge?" Gray asked.

"This is my investigation. If you got something to say about it, best be speaking up now."

A year apart hadn't changed Gajeel much, despite his new title and his new-found conformity. He was still a metal head looking to scrap at any opportunity.

Juvia whispered something in his ear and Gray deflated.

Jellal started walking. Lucy wrapped her arm around Natsu's waist and pulled him in the proper direction. The dragon slayer followed, one eye on her, the other on Gray at all times. He could feel the other man's agitation; it rivaled only his own. Cold rage—END—was a rancorous giant restlessly sleeping.


	27. Chapter 27

Paper gone soggy, dried out and then doused in rainwater again littered the school's entryway. Natsu navigated it clumsily, barely caring that he dragged his bare feet so much that his toes caught the ends of books and scattered them wildly. Beneath the damp pulpy layer scurried sow bugs, their armoured plating grinding in Natsu's ears. It wasn't truly loud, he knew that, the noise sliding beneath everyone else's attention, but everything felt so raw. So absolutely deafening.

So far ahead that Natsu could barely see his cap of dark hair, Gray seemed equally irritated, muttering about putting down dogs, finishing what he started or inviting disaster. Again and again. There came a point where eventually, Gray stopped talking and focused on breathing unsteadily. Judging by the push of unstable magic, Natsu imagined that it was because he was fighting for control, not because he'd had a change of heart. He could smell Gray's sweat. Pungent. Mixed with Juvia's, and the blood and the myriad of other bad smells in the dilapidated school, Natsu felt sick, and like his skin was too small for his body. _I have to get out of here._ Or else he was going to lose his mind. A look over his shoulder brought the off-kilter door they'd entered through into view, its frame so badly bent twelve months before that it didn't even keep the wind out. _Go_.

"There is still running water to the building." Jellal's voice broke through Natsu's mounting panic. "The town decided not to turn it off in case displaced people needed some place to rest for a few days. No one comes in here, though. At least, not in the time we've been here. The washrooms and the showers are working. You can all get cleaned up. Juvia, you should have those wounds looked after before you do anything."

Through the bodies, Natsu found Juvia beside Gray. She looked just as pale and just as sweaty as he did, caked in blood, bruised, broken likely, fractured at least. Guilt hit Natsu hard. Those were his fists, in a roundabout way. _'Do you know how many people have suffered because of you_?' Gray's words could leave him hollow.

"I'll help her," Cheria said and let go of her hold on Wendy's hand. Until that moment, they'd been inseparable.

"Thank you, Cheria. You can choose a classroom for some privacy," Jellal said, "Most of them are empty." He turned his gaze to Lily while Cheria got Gray and Juvia mobile. "There should be more than enough room for us as well as the other group, too, when they arrive."

Lily replied, "As soon as we've settled, Happy and I will find the Strausses and Laxus' team and bring them here. In the meantime, I think we should do a circuit of the building, make sure we don't have any surprise visitors."

"Aye," Happy muttered quietly, Carla mimicked him. They chatted, talking about routes and buddies and the idea of splitting up, and the final decision to stay together. Natsu barely listened to them plan, busy watching Cheria's retreating back. Gray and Juvia limped on after, greatly supporting each other. He kept his eyes on them until they ducked into a room and disappeared. Unsurprisingly, distance didn't stop him from feeling the other man's volatile anger, the call of his magic. He found himself wanting to respond. It was hard to ignore the urge, even knowing that if they were to fight again, he would be hurting Juvia and Meredy as well.

"How long until the sensory link can be broken?" Natsu surprised himself by asking.

Jellal responded, "As soon as Meredy's awake, we'll try to figure out what went wrong. Until then, stay away from Gray."

Natsu hoped that he _could_. And subsequently, that Gray could as well.

A door to the right opened and a lithe woman stepped out, catching his wandering attention and refocusing it. Scantily clad in a white _something_ that could hardly be called clothes, she leaned up against the doorframe of one of the classrooms, looking bored and mean and obstinate. "Jellal, you came back. And you brought visitors. After you told us not to have contact with anyone in Magnolia. I think someone's a _hypocrite_." She sang the last word almost playfully.

Jellal barely glanced at Sorano. "Show Natsu, Lucy and Wendy where the washrooms are, then take Carla, Happy and Lily around and show them the rest of the building."

"Pretty please?" she jibed.

Jellal responded by saying, "Now."

The girl huffed and muttered about redeeming her sins in a way that was a little more fun. She moved, though, and everyone fell into file behind her.

Wendy looked back over her shoulder; Jellal wasn't there anymore, stepped into one of the classrooms. "What's wrong with him?"

Sorano glanced back at her, her mean edge softening some as she addressed Wendy. "I suppose he's worried. Richard and Sawyer are dead."

"Dead?" Natsu repeated.

"Richard died on our way to retrieve Cheria, attacked in the valleys by some... _thing_ , and Sawyer... Jellal didn't say much, but Macbeth says he was a real mess when they pulled him out of the canal. Jellal thinks it's Zeref. Says he felt his aura or some crap."

 _'Do you know how many lives you've taken_?'

"That's horrible," Wendy murmured.

' _How many have suffered because of you?'_ Natsu chose his path less carefully than he should have, unmindful of the broken bits of tile and brick. It was a kind of punishment for _this._ The cold in his chest. The memories he couldn't quite capture, but lingered like ghosts in fog. The sympathy he felt for Zeref even after everything. Juvia and Lucy and—

"Your feet are bleeding, Natsu. Be careful."

Natsu startled; he'd forgotten Happy was there. "Thanks, Happy." He didn't bother treading more carefully.

"I'll call Virgo again and ask her to get everyone something to wear." Lucy spoke quietly from Natsu's side. Her hand slid back into his, her fingers tighter than ever. Natsu clutched her for dear life

Sorano turned left down a long hallway. "There's glass on the ground here." A liberal spray of it from glass cabinets that used to hold trophies, recognition plaques and other nonsense. Natsu felt it all dig into his skin. Sort of. He felt the bite, felt the pain, but didn't feel concerned like he thought he might.

Their guide came to a halt outside of a pair of twin solid (and ugly) off-lime green doors. "There're girls' and boys' washrooms, I'll let you choose."

Lucy tugged Natsu toward the closest one: the boys' room. "This is fine. Thank you."

Sorano smiled vaguely. "Well, Exceeds?"

"Lead on," Lily replied.

Distantly, Natsu heard Happy murmur about catching up in a few. When the others left, he stayed by Natsu's side as Lucy pushed open the door to the wide and mostly intact room. White tiles scrubbed to a polish with vinegar were only dulled by a year's worth of dust and some minor imperfections: cracks here and there, black fissures that Natsu imagined, if he tried really, really hard, could hide beasts. His feet slipped over the tile floor, wet with blood.

Wendy came to his side and tugged his other hand before he could get too far. "Sit. We'll fix your feet." Right there on the floor.

His depreciation didn't extend to stubbornness; Natsu was too tired for that. He pulled out of either girl's grasp and let himself drop down, feeling the floor's grit beneath his palms. Lucy stayed standing and brandished Virgo's key. The dragon slayer watched her out of the corner of his eye, unconcerned with what Wendy was doing down at his feet. Small tugs and _clinks_ told him she was pulling glass from his skin. Happy got down beside her and passed her a cloth from his pack so she could mop up the excess blood. As she worked, he presented questions: _How are you feeling? Are you tired?_ When she assured him she was fine, despite her pale and sickly complexion, he asked, _What did you do all year? Did you like travelling with Erza? Did you train lots like me and Natsu?_

Wendy answered all of his questions thoroughly; Natsu got the impression that she used them as a focal point to keep her mounting exhaustion at bay.

"That's enough, Wendy," Natsu said finally when she was mostly done with his feet and tried to move on to his other injuries.

"You're still hurt," Wendy protested.

His face, knuckles and ribs all bore signs of his fight. "I'm alright." He'd had worse, probably.

Wendy curled her lip up in a new and stubborn way that was reminiscent of Erza. Natsu derailed her argument. "Take care of Lucy." Lucy, who now stood alone beneath a mountainous pile of clothes.

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine."

"But—" Wendy started.

"There are people more hurt than me, Wendy, and there might be more, we don't know. Please don't waste your energy," Lucy said.

Wendy buckled. "Maybe you're right."

Natsu almost told her to do the work anyway, that way he wouldn't look at the bruise on Lucy's neck and think about how that was his doing in a way as well. His mouth remained firmly closed, reason winning out. Lucy put clothes in his hands, a pair of plain black pants, a long-sleeved black shirt and a black coat trimmed with silver. The boots she left on the ground beside him were combat-style, the tongues reaching to his shins at least.

Then she rocked back on her heels and nibbled her lip. "Virgo gave me stuff for Gray and Juvia, I'm going to deliver it." She looked like she was waiting for Natsu to argue.

She was right. "You should stay away from him." It didn't take too much effort to recall Gray's breath attack barreling toward her, strong enough to take her away for good.

"Like he thinks I should stay away from you?" Lucy was ashamed as soon as she said it. Natsu looked like she'd slapped him. "Natsu, I didn't—"

"It's okay," he replied abruptly.

It wasn't. Lucy felt everyone's eyes on her. Her neck got hot. "I'll only be a few minutes. We'll talk after."

"You're coming back?" His guileless question almost broke Lucy's heart. She reached down and cupped his cheek with her free hand. His skin was cold and rough with stubble.

"Of course I'm coming back. Don't go anywhere."

He couldn't imagine leaving yet. "I was just going to shower."

Lucy refused to be embarrassed as she said, "Wait for me."

Happy made a strangled noise. Lucy didn't look at him.

Natsu searched her eyes. "Okay."

Lucy bent and laid a kiss to his temple. When she stood and faced the door again, she couldn't help but look at a red faced Wendy and a smirking Happy. Movement helped keep her from blushing. Wendy fell into step beside her.

"I'm going to help Cheria with Gray and Juvia," she explained when Lucy raised an inquisitive brow.

"Sure." The bathroom door closed behind them, blocking Happy and Natsu from view. Being out of sight didn't vanish him from her mind. Lucy worried at her cheek, playing the scene in the bedroom over in her mind again and again. Gray chirped in her ear. _'Did you not hear me? He's END_.'

"Don't look so worried, Lucy, everything will be okay," Wendy said.

"Yeah," Lucy agreed with a bland smile. She tried to be more positive. "It's good to see you again, Wendy. I missed you."

"I missed you, too," she returned. "Not that Erza gave me much time for it, we were always on one job or another."

"I couldn't even imagine how hard it was travelling with her. Did she even sleep?"

Wendy laughed. "No. Not really. It was hard, but I wouldn't change it. I learned a lot."

Lucy stopped in front of the plain wooden door Gray and Juvia disappeared behind and hesitated with her fist raised to knock. Wendy only let her dither for so long before she knocked for her. Yes, she'd learned plenty from Erza. How not to procrastinate. How to be bolder.

The door was pulled back. Lucy's stomach jumped unpleasantly as Gray came into view. His cheek was swollen and black and his skin had a parchment look to it. There was still blood at the corner of his fat lip. He looked worse than when he'd first burst into her room an hour before, which was saying a lot, because he looked like shit then, too.

He didn't say anything as he took her in. He stepped out, Wendy stepped in and the door closed, leaving them alone in the long, mostly dark hallway.

"I brought stuff for you and Juvia." Lucy lifted the clothes half-heartedly.

Gray glanced down. "Thanks." He took them from her hands.

"How is she?"

"Hurt."

"But she's responding to Cheria's treatment?"

"Yeah."

Having a conversation was like pulling teeth. Lucy kept at it. "What happened?"

Given the look on his face, Lucy thought he'd tell her to mind her own business. But no. He seemed more than happy to purge himself of this guilt, it was only getting started that was the issue. "I made a sensory link with her last night. Everything I experienced, she did as well," he said. "We were attacked, I thought... I couldn't feel her anymore. So I didn't care." It was half the truth. Facing Natsu, he couldn't _think._

"What attacked you?"

His fist clenched. "A demon."

Lucy was sorry she asked as soon as he spat out the word. "Where is it now?"

"I don't know, hopefully dead."

He looked so righteous saying it. Thinking she knew what was coming, she tried to sidetrack him. "Well, I'm glad Juvia's okay. I thought… maybe I could talk to her?"

An emotion flitted over Gray's face so fast, Lucy didn't quite catch it. "I don't want to bother her, Lucy, she's tired."

"Oh." She didn't have the courage to push to talk to Juvia and she didn't have the courage to ask about Gray's altercation with Natsu. She wasn't even brave enough to keep standing there. "I hope the clothes are okay. I'll see you in a little while, alright?" She was turned around and three steps in when Gray called her name. Lucy stiffened.

"You're not going back to him."

It took her a few seconds to process. "I'm not?" That was rather presumptuous, wasn't it?

"No one should be near him. Stay here and..."

Lucy thought she knew what Gray was gearing himself up to in his pregnant pause. She couldn't look at him.

He chose his words carefully. "And wait with Juvia while I take care of him." Careful or not, Gray's delivery left a lot to be desired, his voice strangled and brimming with violence.

Lucy focused on the row of lockers ahead of her. The metal rippled and the grey paint chipped, their structure set to rot by rainwater leaking through the holey ceiling. "Take care of him? And what does that mean, Gray?"

Dropping the clothes, he grabbed her wrist and turned her around so she could see the sincerity on his face, and the regret. "I want everyone to be safe."

She tugged out of his grasp. "Then turn your attention outward. We're being attacked every time we turn around, and it's not from Natsu."

He searched her eyes. "It won't be long."

"Until what?" she whispered harshly. "Until you both tear each other apart? And for what? An accusation that means _nothing_?"

He grabbed her wrist again, and the other, too, and pulled her in closer so they were almost body-to-body. "What's the matter with you? I tell you he's END and you tell me it's nothing?"

They were too close. Closer than they'd been in months and months. Lucy tried to wriggle out of his grasp and could not. Gray's skin got several degrees colder, the black fractured mark stretching up his bare arm a few inches. She refused to panic, meeting his gaze steadily. "You say END, but what are you even going off of?"

"My instincts," he said immediately.

"Instincts?"

"Yes. I can _feel_ it. And the demon that attacked us confirmed it."

Lucy would have thrown her hands in the air if she could. "Gray, demons _lie_. They lie all the time! I can't believe you're considering seriously hurting one of your best friends over something a damn demon said!"

Gray tightened his grip, face going taut. "Do you think I _like_ this?"

"You must," she replied, "Otherwise you'd see reason and _stop_." There wasn't any keeping her voice down, every time she tried, it just got louder again. "You've known Natsu almost your entire life! You know this is a lie. He's as human as you or me."

He shook his head. "You saw the exact same thing I did when I came into your room. If all those scales weren't enough proof, you've been spending time with him. You _know_ he's not right."

Loyalty and panic conspired to make Lucy's throat small. Swallowing didn't help any. Neither did breathing deeply. "Stay away from him."

"I can't," Gray said simply.

"Gray, I swear—"

He squeezed her wrists until it hurt. "You don't understand, Lucy. Even if I wanted to, I couldn't. Just being near him makes me sick. I have this _compulsion_ and not following it… it's not a good scene. I know it's not what you want to hear, I know it's hard and you think you love him or something, but he needs to be taken care of."

Lucy still couldn't jerk out of his grasp. She settled for spitting venom. "Taken care of? You're talking about killing him. Call it what it is."

Her words had a physical effect. Gray's body convulsed, his mind and his magic and his heart all at odds. It passed as he came to some kind of resolution. "To keep everyone I care about safe? Yes. I'm going to kill him. Go inside, Lucy; don't make this harder than what it already is."

Lucy primed a volley of curses. She didn't get them out, distracted as the classroom door opened and Juvia stuck her head out. Most of her bruises were gone, and when she stood, she didn't bend over her ribs, gasping in pain. She didn't look at Lucy, leaving the blonde to wonder if they'd ever meet each other's eyes again or if those days were just gone. Her chest panged hollowly.

"Gray-sama," Juvia spoke. "Come inside."

Gray's body became rigid. He looked into Lucy's eyes, seemed to realize how close they were, and dropped her like she'd burned him. Lucy's wrists ached in his absence, cold and sore. She rubbed them; it did little to make them feel better.

Though he'd released her, he hadn't let up on his crusade. "I can't let you go back to him."

"You don't have the right to make that choice," Lucy replied, all too aware of Juvia watching the exchange.

"Lucy," he started again.

"Leave it, for now, Gray-sama," Juvia said.

Gray warred with himself; it was a long, drawn-out battle. He stepped away from Lucy eventually. Freed from the stalemate, Lucy rushed back to the washrooms alone.

* * *

"What's wrong, Natsu?"

The dragon slayer rolled his head on his shoulders and found his best friend gripping his tail nervously. "Nothing's wrong, Happy."

"That's crap," the cat replied. "Why were you and Gray fighting?"

"We always fight," Natsu dodged.

"Not like that." Happy stepped closer to him. "What is it? You can trust me."

Natsu opened his mouth to shoo his friend off again. The words fizzled out. Very quickly, he realized he didn't have the energy to lie. "Gray accused me of being END."

Happy let that sink in for a moment, then shook his head incredulously. "What? Where the heck did he get that idea from? You told him he's crazy, right?"

"No."

"You should have. He's said some really stupid stuff over the years but this has got to take the cake. What a dummy."

Natsu couldn't argue with that. Gray _was_ pretty dumb.

Happy said, "I got your back—I'll tell him for you." He started for the door.

"No, Happy," Natsu said.

"Don't worry, he hates you, not me," Happy was nonchalant as always. "I'll be fine."

"No, I mean…" _Just spit it out._ "I didn't tell him because it's true."

"Funny." He was almost at the door.

"I'm not kidding around."

It took the cat a few solid seconds to turn and face Natsu again. When he did, there was doubt on his face, and a tinge of fear. "You're Natsu Dragneel, not END. I think I'd know if my best bud was a demon."

"Happy…" Outside, the wind howled, loud in the quiet that followed.

"You're serious?" Happy asked.

Natsu showed him his palm, the scales that had shrunk but were starting their migration once more. His knuckles were sharp and black. "Yes."

"I've known you forever, Natsu, and you've never been a demon before," Happy protested.

Natsu scrubbed his hands through his gritty hair, feeling bits of sand caked in with some blood he wasn't sure was his or not. He tried to think of how to explain everything. There was no easy way, so he launched into an abbreviated version of the last few days, starting with that annoying little thorn and ending with his last dream—by the river, Zeref's shoulder abutting his, the news of Master Makarov hanging between them.

"And you believe him."

"I didn't at first. But… Yeah."

Happy was quiet. Finally, Natsu couldn't stand the silence and said, "Zeref wants to end his life."

"Then I say let him," Happy replied fiercely, suddenly animated—pacing and wringing his tail and puffing up his fur, things he wasn't even conscious of.

It was hard to remain looking at him. Natsu managed somehow. "We're connected."

Happy came to a halt. "What?"

"If he dies, I die." His chest burned with the memory, the puckered white scar Zeref's knife left behind still visible and tender.

It was hard for Happy's eyes to get wider. " If what you're saying is true, then we need to disconnect you."

Natsu's responding smile was more than a little weak and a lot of sad. "I don't think it can be done."

"Then we'll find a way."

Of course, he'd be stubborn. "Let me rephrase: I don't think I want it done."

Happy went right back to pacing and wringing his tail. "Why the heck not?"

Natsu sighed. "Because I'm the only one that can put a stop to this. No one else is strong enough to kill him. Because I'm his brother and it's my duty."

Happy reeled on him, swinging back into denial. "Natsu, do you hear yourself? _This is crazy_. We should talk to Porlyusica, see if we can't get you medicated or something—I think that last punch Gray gave you knocked a few screws loose."

"I'm not crazy."

Happy was more than glad to latch onto his own explanation. "It's okay. You've been under a lot of stress. That crap with Lucy, and the guild, and all those people getting hurt in town. Now Master Makarov. It's enough to make anyone feel a little funny."

"I don't feel _funny,_ Happy."

"Sure." Happy released his tail and glanced toward the door. Natsu recognized that look.

"You're not going anywhere, not to tell anyone I've lost a few marbles."

Happy pleaded, "Natsu, let me help you."

"No. I don't need help. You keep this between me and you."

"Natsu—"

"Promise me."

Tears filled Happy's eyes. "No—if you're not mental, you're asking me to let you die!"

Hearing it spoken aloud so candidly was like having the wind knocked out of him. Natsu weathered the abuse. "This is the best way to keep everyone safe, you know it, I know it. Swear to me you'll be quiet."

The dragon slayer knew Happy believed him more than not when the cat asked, "What about Lucy?"

Yes. Lucy. "Don't say anything to her either. I don't want her to hurt any more than she has to." She'd just obsess and cry right up until the moment it happened, and he wasn't sure he was strong enough to do what needed to be done if she begged him not to. Even if it meant she was safe.

Happy looked like he was just shy of hitting him. "You promised her you wouldn't leave anymore, Natsu!"

Natsu shoved his hands through his hair again, frustrated beyond belief. "Don't you think I know that?"

"Maybe you do, but I don't think you _understand._ If you don't tell her, I will."

"No, you won't," Natsu said with surety.

"Watch me."

The door chose that moment to open. Lucy came through, looking disheveled and manic and more than a little scared. The fear didn't leave when she looked at Natsu. It didn't grow either, though. Natsu glanced down at Happy, waiting, waiting, wondering what he'd do if he gambled wrong and Happy opened his mouth.

"Lucy," the cat forced her name out. Natsu tensed.

The girl looked away from Natsu and met Happy's eyes. "What is it, Happy?"

He took in a deep breath, full of bravery and stubbornness, and then he released it weakly, filling instead with loyalty. "…Your shirt's ripped."

Lucy looked down to the frayed ends of her long-sleeved T-shirt. "I don't think it's going to get repeat wear."

"Right. I'm going to catch up with Carla and Lily," Happy said shamefacedly. He walked out without another word. Natsu released the breath he didn't know he was holding. He'd been fairly sure Happy would come through, but it was still a relief.

"What's going on with him?" Lucy asked.

"He's just scared," Natsu responded and felt bad for the lie.

"Everyone is." Lucy returned to the door and flicked over the deadbolt, partially for privacy, partially to keep Gray out—not that she thought it would sidetrack him for long if he really wanted to get in. The _clunk_ the metal made falling into place resonated with a sense of finality. She wished there were more locks to engage. She looked away, otherwise she'd stand there all day thinking of ways to make it more secure, and came back to him. He was reluctant to give up his scaled hand when she grabbed it. Lucy was dogged, dissatisfied until their fingers were tangled together and she'd pulled him to his feet. "How are you feeling?"

Looking down, he could see the golden flecks in her eyes. "I'm okay."

"You should have let Wendy finish with your wounds. Gray is looking worse for wear, too."

Natsu squeezed her fingers. He didn't want to think about Gray. Lucy wouldn't let up. "He's—I don't know. He's gone crazy. He wants to kill you, Natsu. And I don't think he was just talking. I think he really meant what he said."

Because that's what devil slayers did, they killed demons.

Natsu didn't have a good response.

"…You should leave Magnolia."

"Leave Magnolia." Speaking aloud didn't help with the digestion of Lucy's words.

"Yes. I'll help out here until we've taken care of Zeref and his lackeys, then I'll meet up with you and we'll… we'll go anywhere. You, me and Happy."

"Run away. Why would you say that?" Natsu asked.

In the most earnest way Natsu had ever heard, Lucy said, "Because, I keep thinking, when Gray accused you of being END, you didn't shoot him down. You looked scared, Natsu. And you still do."

He opened his mouth—to refute her, or to spit out the truth, he didn't know. Lucy laid her finger against his lips and silenced him. "I don't know if I believe it or not, but I know what Gray thinks and I know what devil slayer magic is good for. Please."

Natsu almost said yes, if it would dispel the panicked look she wore. The truth of the matter was, "I can't."

She grunted in frustration, incorrectly reading his stubbornness. "I don't know why you always have to be at ground zero. You can trust us to take care of this."

She didn't understand and he didn't know how to make her, not without making her cry more. "Everything is going to be okay."

"Everyone keeps saying that. I want to believe you, but you're acting so weird, Natsu. Hot, and then detached. You're scaring me." Lucy was already on the verge of tears without his help.

"Because of what Gray said?"

"I don't _care_ what he said," she replied. The odd thing was, he believed her.

Braver, Natsu tugged her closer and repeated, "Everything is going to be fine. Trust me."

Some of her tension eased. "I do trust you."

Natsu bent and brushed their mouths together, just to see if she meant it. Lucy didn't stiffen, afraid, she didn't push him away, disgusted, she breathed unsteadily and clenched his hand and his shoulder, drawing him closer. Her lips opened. She tasted like dust residue and a hint of this morning's toothpaste.

Untangling their hands, Natsu weaved his fingers through her messy hair and kissed her properly. As soon as he did, he realized there was an unexpected side-effect: his mind blanked of almost everything but Lucy. He kissed her more firmly. Maybe he _was_ END, he didn't have to let it consume his every thought, though. Mouths together, he didn't have to think about his growing discomfort, the scales inching over his body again, or fate looming over his head. Everything muted beneath hands and lips and suddenly bare skin.

"We shouldn't, Natsu…" The protest was weakened by plucking fingers. "The door's locked?"

"You locked it."

"We should check."

With great effort, Natsu looked over his shoulder. The deadbolt was in place. "It's fine."

Lucy put herself against the wall, facing him this time. Without the floor being wet, it was easier to grab her by the hips and lift her. Pain faded, fear and coldness shortly behind it. He forgot about END and Gray and Zeref for moments, just long enough to squeeze out a little more enjoyment.

* * *

After returning to the room they'd chosen (language arts, with all of its saggy bookshelves, swollen pages and dust-covered desks) Gray realized that the hardest part wasn't facing Juvia after everything, but banishing Wendy and Cheria from the room. They wouldn't go easily, not without healing some of his wounds, too, regardless of how much he protested.

Cheria reported two cracked ribs, a fractured orbital bone, and bruised knuckles. How very human. He felt betrayed by his devil slayer's mark, which really meant betrayed by Juvia and her misguided attempt to make him feel better. He welcomed the first bout of anger and smothered the rest. There wasn't any sense being mad, she didn't know.

When Wendy and Cheria were done, he didn't feel better, not exactly, just like he was falling apart a little less. Everything was still a mess. He was still so cold it hurt. He was still elbow deep in a migraine that was on the verge of making him nauseous. Slouching to the cracked tile floor, placing his head against the wall and closing his eyes didn't offer much relief. Juvia settled down beside him, not tucking into him exactly, but pressing into his shoulder. Her breath was so, so warm breaking over his bare chest. And uneven. Gray hardly dared to ask, "What are you thinking?"

Her soft hand found his. "That…"

"Just say it." He couldn't stand feeling all the apprehension and fear that she did. It would drive him crazy.

"I knew you cared for her, I just didn't realize how much."

He waited for the tears. She sniffled. Gray said, "You know it's not enough."

Her hand went over his heart. "Yes. Tell me you love me, Gray-sama."

Moving was inviting explosions behind his eyes as he laid his lips against her forehead. "I love you."

A small tremor moved through her. She put their mouths together. "You're still angry."

"Yeah, Juvia. It'll pass."

Juvia sniffled again. "I'm sorry. I really thought she was going to help."

Gray couldn't tell where his misery ended and Juvia's began. Who ever thought a sensory link was a good idea? "Forget about it, Juvia. We have more important things to think about. You need to stay away from Natsu. And Lucy, too. He'll be where she is."

"He loves her."

"He's a demon," Gray replied. "You heard the exact same thing I did. _Master END._ "

"Juvia doesn't want to believe it."

He squeezed her fingers tight. "You don't have to. All I need you to do is trust me."

Juvia's breath staggered on the way in. "Yes."

"I'll make it right."

Through the unbreakable sensory link, Gray felt how unsure she was, even if she said the right words. Doubt was the last thing he needed, but it was the only thing that dared court him.

* * *

With Lily flying beside him, Happy went as fast as he liked, unconcerned with things like carrying Natsu, or keeping pace with his friend. On high, all of Magnolia was splayed out beneath him like the world's foulest flower. Dappling daylight, morning bleeding into afternoon, couldn't mask the ugliness, the cracked streets, the dilapidated buildings, the citizens that hobbled along, reaching for a semblance of normalcy when everything they'd ever known was thrown into disarray.

"Why doesn't the King send funds?" Happy asked.

Lily said, "He has, but he needs to spend wisely."

"This _would_ be a wise thing to spend it on," Happy replied. "Look at all these people suffering."

"People suffer everywhere," Lily told him. "He can't just send all of his money here, he needs to make sure that all of his citizens are taken care of."

Happy frowned, not sharing the King's views.

Beyond the stretching façade of what used to be the town hall, Happy caught sight of the guild. So far below, Laxus and the others looked small, ants in a colony working together to repair all of the damage done. Or dig a grave, in this case. The tilled dirt wouldn't be hidden amongst the dying grass, rich and dark. Too fresh. It was hard to believe that Master Makarov lay below all that soil.

Happy turned his eyes away from the mound and focused on the group below. Laxus sank his shovel into the earth, finished. Bickslow clapped him on the back. Across the grave, Mira wiped her eyes in the shelter of Elfman's bulk, Lisanna at her side. Freed was talking lowly to Evergreen. Happy swirled, catching one of the last warm air currents of the season and started his descent. Lily stopped him, pointing to the south.

"What's that?"

Happy followed his paw to a smudge of black on the horizon. "Smoke."

"And that?" Lily pointed not so far away, where a woman carrying a child staggered along the cart path leading into town. The child—a young boy of maybe eight—hung limply in her arms. Happy didn't need to ask if he was asleep, his answer was obvious enough: no one could be so boneless.

The woman didn't cry as she trekked or yell to grab their attention. Mira was the first of the group to notice, just by chance lifting her gaze to scout the horizon. The takeover mage moved toward her, walking at first. Then, noticing the woman's macabre cargo and all the blood, she began to run. Near enough to be heard, Mira's clear-as-a-bell voice asked, "Are you okay?"

Happy strained his ears to hear the deadpan reply. "An army is coming. It's going to kill us all." She fell then, spilling with her gross package to the ground. Judging by the wet red flower blooming on her back, Happy thought she was dead, too.


	28. Chapter 28

Even with the city in ruins, Erza knew Magnolia intricately. It was her home, no matter where she travelled, how long she was gone or how it looked upon her return. Every old nook, every old cranny was familiar, and soon every new one would be, too, if she had her way. But not today. Today she had no patience for studying the town's additions—or in some cases, subtractions (sometimes there were huge holes in the earth, and likewise, sometimes the ground looked like it had been hauled up and smashed together mercilessly to form the ugliest rubble mountains). Her mind was elsewhere. She kept her steps long and didn't feel at all guilty for Levy huffing from many paces back as she fought to keep up. She kept her eyes forward and only regretted that Gajeel lingered behind with Levy so she couldn't burn a hole through his body.

Not that she needed to wait long for an altercation.

"It's just business, Erza. You know, you'll be able to visit him in jail, right? I'll put in a good word, too. If Jellal has good behaviour in the first few months, I can get him moved out of the maximum security section and you can even have conjugal visits."

 _That_ pulled the redhead to a stop beside what used to be the pharmaceutical building. It had been raided months and months ago, pillaged for anything of value, then condemned. _Now,_ almost a year later, it was taped off with a 'Rebuilding' sign stamped to a pile of splinters that used to be the front door.

"A conjugal visit. Is that what you think I want, Gajeel?"

"Well…" He laughed awkwardly, searching for the man he used to be, trying to be glib, trying to make light of a shitty situation.

"No, Erza," Levy spoke, saving Gajeel a lot of pain. "We know that's not what you want. Heck, we don't want to have to arrest him. We're bound to do the right thing, though."

Erza felt tears press at her eyes. She smothered them. They didn't have _time_ for this shit. She couldn't help the feeling of betrayal that tried to choke her, though. It just wouldn't be silenced. "All I can think is that you used me to get to him. It's not something I think anyone that was once a member of Fairy Tail would do—has a year apart truly changed you so much?"

"What? No, Erza. Jellal isn't our main purpose here," Levy assured her.

Erza's hands felt sweaty in her gauntlets despite the cooling season. "I wish I could believe you."

"It's true. I would never do that, no matter if I was ordered to or not."

Erza finally turned to look at them. Levy looked like she was about to melt where she stood; even Gajeel looked uncomfortable. "If it's so true, then why didn't you tell me you were part of the council?"

Levy was on the verge of evasion; she came through at the last minute. "Our mission is supposed to be secret. It was handed down by Chairman Draculos Hyberion himself. Recently, there's been a powerful force moving across Fiore, hitting spots where great magical catastrophes have left residual magic in the earth. After the person's passed through the area, the earth has been stripped of the power. We followed them here, to Magnolia. It's a hotspot after the Tartarus incident."

Erza chewed that over, compiling Levy's expressions, her intonation, her delivery, looking for flaws in her words—flaws meant lies, and lies meant that her fury was justified. Levy's performance was faultless. Either she was the Queen of Liars, or she was telling the truth. "And Jellal just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time."

"Something like that," Gajeel said.

"Have you told the council he's here?"

"I'm going to have to file a complete report, Erza," Gajeel replied.

"Or you could not," she said, hopeful.

He said not unkindly, "If I don't, it'll be me, Lily and Levy in jail. And you, too."

Erza entertained hitting him. "Why are you being like this?"

"Because, it's the right thing," Gajeel said.

Erza closed the distance between them; she didn't even remember moving. "There was a time when you didn't know what that meant. He's doing good work with Crime Sorciere. He's putting his life on the line to help us. He _saved_ Wendy." Well, he got Cheria and brought her back so _she_ could save Wendy. Semantics.

He weathered her words like an old captain. "I'm not denying any of that, Erza."

Erza didn't know what to say so she twisted on her heel and kept moving, needing to do _something_ , otherwise she'd say terrible things that she didn't necessarily mean. Under her feet, pieces of cobble and bits of gravel rolled, trying to drag her down to the ground. She barely paid attention to her ankles wobbling, thinking of some way to be true to her guild and her country and to Jellal. She felt like a rat in a maze, pulled apart by her heart and her mind. Reason had never felt so elusive.

Coming around the corner, the guardhouse came into view. It was an ugly building in the light of the bright, bright sun. So ugly, in fact, Erza thought even darkness couldn't make it look better. Out front of the dead gardens stood a woman in a black and white garment that showed more than it covered. Despite her clothing trying to draw the eye to her body, her hair was what caught Erza's attention, scarlet like blood, a beacon. Erza's stomach dropped seeing her, though she couldn't have said why.

The woman leaned into a single guard, one hand on his chin, the other producing something white and square. The man opened his hand and she deposited it in his palm. Erza got close enough to hear her say, "Remember, she can't be left alive."

"Yes, Lady Eileen. What about the devil slayer?"

"You won't have to worry about him. His number is up. Just do your bit."

"Am I going to die?"

She brushed her fingers over his face. "Probably. But you'll die doing something for me, isn't that worth it, Riley, dear?"

Erza heard his breath come out in a small _whoosh_. "Yes."

"Good boy." She tapped his cheek and stood. Her gaze slid right over to Erza's. Erza felt her stomach drop again. She pushed the feeling aside, not wanting to give it a name, though if she were honest with herself, it would have been fear. There was something about this woman. Maybe it was the way her hands weren't quite human, long nails and thick scales, or the coldness in her eyes. Or the sensation she had of looking in the mirror. Whatever it was, it wasn't something that was easily dismissed.

The woman straightened her scarlet hair after a pre-autumn gust grabbed it, and approached confidently. "Hello, Councilmen. I'm disappointed you survived. And Erza. It's been a very, very long time."

Erza's shoulders had never felt stiffer. "Do we know each other?"

"Once. Shame you don't remember me." She pouted. "Just as well." She looked over her shoulder to where Riley Ackles still stood. "Hurry up, Riley. Clock's ticking."

The man shivered. "I don't want to hurt anyone."

"Remember, that girl is preventing his Majesty from his eternal peace. Your sacrifice is important."

"…Yes, Lady." He started to move, legs like two stiff pillars.

"Stay where you are," Erza commanded. The fear was even more potent now with the woman's words rolling around in her head. _'His number is up.'_

The guard kept walking.

"I said _wait_ ," Erza repeated.

Looking over his shoulder, Riley looked like he wanted to listen, but his body just wouldn't cooperate.

"I'll get him," Levy said and moved.

The woman lifted her hand and the ground beneath Levy's feet bent. The girl was flat on her ass looking up at the sky before she really registered what happened.

Gajeel swore. His first instinct was to help her up but he hardly dared to take his eyes off the woman before him. "She's the one that's been collecting the magic, Erza. Levy and I saw her the other day. She had a stone she was gathering it into."

The woman smiled. "I don't think we've been properly introduced. I am Eileen Belserion, former Queen of the Dragons. But you may call me Lady Eileen. I am his Majesty's most trusted advisor, his right hand."

"His Majesty?" Erza kept her attention divided, partially watching Levy get to her feet—she seemed unharmed—partially watching Riley Ackles inch away—he seemed torn—and partially watching the woman before her— _she_ seemed on the verge of violence. The power seeping out of her body made Erza's skin crawl. If she thought it would help any, she'd attempt to rub the goose bumps from her arms.

"Of course," Eileen laughed. "You know him as the dark mage, Zeref, but in the Alvarez Empire, he is Emperor Spriggan."

 _Zeref…_ "What does Zeref want with Gray?" He was the only devil slayer Erza knew of.

"So curious…"

Erza called a sword to hand. "Speak, or I'll cut the truth from you."

"You truly are your mother's daughter, aren't you?"

Erza didn't ask her what she meant, afraid that it was a ploy to distract her. "Speak."

Eileen bowed her head. "Very well. His death. While our friend Riley takes care of Lucy Heartfilia, Akio will _finally_ do what she was born to and destroy Gray Fullbuster."

In Erza's periphery, Levy was catching up with Riley and reaching for her magic. To prevent another mishap like before, Erza asked her questions, pumping Eileen for information and buying Levy time. "Why target them?"

Candid now, Eileen said, "It is his Majesty's belief that Lucy Heartfilia's death will bring END into this world. Once that happens, Gray Fullbuster is the only one that can stop him, so…" She drew her finger over her neck, a soft smile on her ruby lips. "You understand."

Levy's magic took hold, a thick iron cage coming into being and dropping around Riley. He didn't stop even when he ran into the bars, a zombie. Eileen didn't break eye contact with Erza as she flicked out her wrist, simultaneously dissolving the iron cage and sending Levy flying again. Their captive was on the loose once more.

Erza didn't have to move, Gajeel was already on it, though his methods were far more ruthless than Erza would have expected. The ground around Riley erupted in spikes sharp enough to impale. Most of them formed a barricade, but one found home in Riley's shoulder, the wound not fatal but certainly debilitating. Unnervingly, the man didn't scream. He didn't clutch the area, he only paled and attempted to keep walking, sliding further and further onto the spike, a mindless beast.

Erza's chest got tight. "What's wrong with him?"

"He has one job, Erza, and one alone, and he'll do anything in his power to complete it," Eileen told her. "And I'll do everything in my power to make sure he's allowed to continue."

Erza tightened her grip on her sword and brought on her Heaven's Wheel armour. "And I'll do everything in my power to stop you."

"Likewise." Several meters away, Levy got to her feet and brushed herself off, facing Eileen more directly. Gajeel, too, turned his gaze away from the impaled guard, deciding that for now, he was going nowhere.

Eileen raised one thin brow. "Three against one. Those aren't very fair odds. Let's even them some _and_ try to get you closer to your target, Riley." She raised her hands. Erza felt her sword and her armour get incredibly heavy. It wasn't long before she realized what was happening. A gravity well. She opened her mouth to shout a warning just as Levy's and Gajeel's legs collapsed. Tugged down by the invisible force and then hit with a disgusting amount of power, there was no time to scream.

Automatically, Erza attempted to go to them. So bogged down, moving was difficult. Not that there was any time. The ground beneath her feet shivered, the air filled again with a different kind of power, and then everything was morphing, the landscape folding and unfolding, turning itself inside out.

The only thing Erza could do was drop to her knees and press her palms against the ground. Her armour distorted and pressed into her body painfully, undergoing gravitational torsion. Unlike Levy and Gajeel, she had plenty of time to scream. It didn't help anything.

As quickly as the magic came, it left again. In its wake, Erza panted, a process more difficult now that her armour was so malformed, and tried to get her bearings. She couldn't feel the ground through her gauntlets to be sure that what she was seeing was correct. Gone was the grass, in its place gravel. _How?_

"Now it's just you and me, Erza," Eileen said from not so far away.

 _Get up. Get up._

Limbs shaking, Erza got to her knees and then her feet and looked around. Nothing made sense. Suddenly, the guardhouse wasn't near the Thorn and Thistle but the community center on the north side of town, and beside that was the old age home. In the distance, she saw the heap that was the guild hall, and next to that, the council satellite office. Way, way to the west was the old school. Erza didn't need to be closer to see the man hobbling toward the door. So far away, there wasn't anything she could do.

* * *

It was with numbness that Laxus watched Mira drop to her knees before the fallen woman and gather the bundled child into her arms. Seconds passed. Then the keening started and he knew the boy was dead. He could see the blood and the limpness but had hoped...

Out of the sky, Happy spiraled down on white feathered wings, panic in his eyes. "Mira!"

Laxus moved only after everyone else had already started to converge. He didn't want to know what that woman had said with her last breath. The only thing he wanted was to grieve his own loss. To get revenge. To rebuild Fairy Tail and see if that made him feel better. It wasn't what fate handed to him, though.

In hearing distance now, Happy's strangled and panicked voice came to him. "There're fires on the horizon. And she said what Gajeel said—an army is coming. They're going to be here soon. Like _today_."

Mira pumped him for information. She was good like that. "An army?"

"Yes. They're marching across Fiore destroying towns and killing hundreds. Gajeel thinks Magnolia's their target." He kept blathering. Laxus only heard part of it, more concerned with a blonde haired woman stepping up over the crest of the hill, a small armed and armoured force behind her. The wind played through her shoulder-length hair, twisting it around her face. She walked calmly, collectedly, a sword at her hip, armour on her shoulders. That was definitely an attack force if Laxus had ever seen one. The woman was familiar. So, so familiar. Laxus searched his memory and was slammed into the night before, watching the fires lap happily at Gramps' feet. His mouth felt dry. He moved past Mira and the others; the dead didn't speak, not to him. The living, however…

Mira raised her voice. "Where are you going?"

Laxus replied, "If Happy's right, this looks like an advance force."

Silence followed the observation, then, "I think you might be on to something there." Bickslow was at his side again, lifting his hand to block out the blinding sun.

Laxus said, "How do you feel about getting some answers?"

"Whatever you say, boss." Freed and Evergreen joined Bickslow.

As the coming force mounted the hill, Laxus counted sixteen soldiers, plus their leader, to their seven—nine, if you counted Lily and Happy. It wasn't amazing odds, but he was confident they could take them.

If he was having doubts about their intentions, there was no room for misconceptions as one of the soldiers, not so far away now, lifted a longbow and loosed an arrow. Laxus burned it out of the sky well before it sank into a person, his lightning faster.

"Could be they don't want to talk," Bickslow mused.

Mira abandoned the dead woman and child and jogged to their sides. The wind caught her dress and twisted it at her feet but it never betrayed her. "I guess we'll have to make them." Her blasé attitude was totally given up into panic as the ground shook and then the world started to change. The fall to the ground was ungraceful, but Mira wasn't alone. Everyone went down and held on for dear life as the landscape changed before their very eyes. The soldiers kept coming, seeming unaffected.

* * *

Lucy dressed methodically, sliding into the loose-fitting dark purple long-sleeved dress Virgo left behind and then into a pair of black suede slouch boots. Her damp hair left dark blotches on the dress's shoulders, and lower, in the center of her back. She dried it one final time with the ratty towel she found in the small closet beside the door, then braided it over her shoulder. Finished, she turned and regarded Natsu. He'd donned his celestial-delivered outfit and looked stark in all the black. His face was paler than usual, his hair brighter. But his eyes… they had never been so dark.

With her body aching in the best way, Lucy went to him and fixed the collar of his jacket. His skin was still so cold beneath her hands, despite the scalding shower, despite the warmer clothes. Unwilling to think about what that meant, she weaved her fingers through his hair and stood on tiptoe for a kiss. Natsu obliged her. It was still so strange. She still thought about the hollow in her chest, the place that was scooped out when he left. Now that he was back it felt like it had been plugged up again, but the stopper didn't fit quite right. _Maybe because you feel him slipping away again…_

She didn't want to give the thought a foothold so she banished it before she really considered what it meant.

Natsu's hands looped around her waist, his fingers dug shamelessly into her backside; he deepened the kiss, pouring into it a wealth of unsaid words. He squeezed her body, feeling everything he could while his tongue abutted hers. Lucy felt her head emptying again.

It didn't last for long. The ground beneath her feet rumbled and then she was hit with the strongest case of vertigo. Staying vertical was an impossibility. Natsu broke away from her and fell seconds before she did, more susceptible to the change. Tangled together, almost nose-to-nose, his already pale face went several shades whiter while the world inverted. Lucy would have backed up, fearful of his motion sickness getting the better of him, but it lasted for only a moment and then everything was steady again.

Dust drifted down from the ceiling, one of the small fissures in the tile growing to an impressive crack that allowed the sun and a seagull's cry to leach through.

Lucy was the first to break the silence, Natsu still trying to get his bearings. "What the heck was that?"

Down the hall, a door opened and banged closed. "Lucy!"

Her name was said by a familiar voice that brimmed with panic. Lucy's heart beat hard.

"Lucy, where are you?"

Natsu sat up, his black clothes covered in dust again. "Who is that?"

"Riley Ackles," Lucy supplied and got to her feet, fixing her dress around her thighs once more.

"Riley… that guard?" If Natsu wasn't so disoriented, there might have even been a touch of discontent to his voice. As it was, he was still getting used to the idea that the world was stationary once more.

"Yeah." And he sounded scared.

"Lucy!"

Lucy hurried across the room and unlocked the door. She was about to tear it back but Natsu's strangled and uncertain voice stopped her. "Wait." She looked back over her shoulder. Natsu was to his knees now, sweat beaded on his brow. The scales on his hand were doing strange things again, bursting through his skin up past his wrist. Lucy imagined that in seconds, they took over the majority of his arm. The coat prevented her from confirming that.

"What is it?"

Footsteps hurried down the hall. A heavy feeling that had very little to do with motion sickness settled in the dragon slayer's chest. His eyes narrowed. "Get away from the door."

"Something's going—"

"Lucy!" Natsu's voice was like a whip. The warning came too late; Lucy was slower than the bullet that smashed through the wood and splintered it a million times. It slammed into her shoulder, the wound not fatal but definitely messy. Blood burst and soaked her dress, her neck, and into her hair, the contrasting colours shockingly blunt. The pain would come after. For now, Lucy fell on her butt and stared in dumb shock as the door opened and Riley Ackles came through, his handsome face looking slightly manic, and yet, somehow a little bit dull. In one hand he clutched something small, holding on to it as one might a prize, in the other was his gun, held like a deadly snake. Lucy looked away from the gun only because in her periphery she saw his mouth moving, lips forming the same pattern. She tuned into his words with some effort.

"Lucy Heartfilia will die," he repeated again and again. "Master END will live. Lucy Heartfilia will die. Master END will live. So Master Zeref can die." He aimed his gun with a shaking hand.

Lucy stared down the barrel of the guard-issued pistol. It seemed impossibly dark, impossibly long, an eye looking through her. Riley's tendons tightened, muscles flexed. A body blocked Lucy's view just as the gun went off again, the shot so loud she went temporarily deaf. Hot spray hit her in the face, her nose, her cheek, her lashes. Lucy blinked and blinked, trying to clear her vision. Before she had any success, sudden and intense power tried to smother her. Her skin was crawling. Unable to see much, sound guided her senses. A gross wet _squelch_ , accompanied by a furious scream came to her ears _._ Something hit the floor. Sprayed again, Lucy knew it was blood by the heady iron smell it held.

She cleared her vision just in time to see Riley fall limp to the ground. He was half the man he used to be, throat torn open, arm missing, the stump heavily bleeding. The other half of his arm found home steps away, fingers twitching.

Hitching breath brought her to Natsu. He held his ribs with a hand that wasn't his and moved toward the door with great purpose. She called him back, his name a weak wisp out of her mouth. He looked over his shoulder only briefly, eyes twin onyx pits. Familiar and not.

She couldn't gather the courage to try again before he exited.

Seconds passed in graveyard quiet. Then Lucy got to her feet, unable to sit still while the world caught flame.

* * *

If it wasn't the world twisting, it was the overbearing power that seemed to get stuck in Gray's throat. There was hardly time to scramble from Juvia's side and lurch a few steps away. The chalkboard wall guided him to his knees when his legs wouldn't lock. There he heaved; there wasn't much in his stomach, a little bit of last night's whisky, a little bit of water. His throat and nose burned; his head hurt worse. He did what he could to keep his knees out of the sick, but truly, his mind was elsewhere. On keeping all of his insides inside for one thing, on doing what he could to block Juvia from the crushing nausea. He was doing a shit job; he could see it on her face when she came to his side.

"Gray-sama." She placed one cool hand in the center of his back, the other on his forehead, always caring more about him than herself. "Gray-sama, are you alright?"

Answering aloud was what people who were not intricately connected did. This was the first time in several long hours that Gray was glad that he'd done the sensory link. There was something absolutely liberating about not having to pretend. He was hit with another wave of nausea. There was something here, in the school. A demon. Or… maybe two. Panting in sour smelling air, Gray sieved through the conflicting power filling up the school and realized he recognized both energies. One that was uniquely Natsu's, and the other…

It was unfortunate that Akio didn't die that first time. Even as he thought that, a sharp pain bloomed in his side.

Juvia, too, went white and clutched the area. "What's happening?"

Through a suddenly aching jaw, Gray growled, "Meredy." Meredy was being attacked, and if he had to guess, it was by the demon Akio. Who knew if anyone was there to help protect her? "We have to go."

"Gray-sama…"

He got it, it was hard to walk, it was hard to think, it was hard to breathe. But… "If she kills Meredy while we're all connected…"

He didn't have to finish, Juvia remembered clearly the last time she and Gray were tied together like this. She grabbed his hand and hauled him to his feet. Gray wiped his mouth on his sleeve and spat on the floor.

In the hallway, the light from the sun filtered through some windows without glass. Air _whooshed_ through. It was windy outside. Gray expected to be breathing fresh air, but all he could smell was smoke and blood. He didn't dare to look outside, afraid of what he'd see. _One thing at a time._

A sharp pop echoing through the hallway made his blood run cold. The sound of a gun was unmistakable. A furious scream chased it. All of the hair on the back of Gray's neck stood on end. Devil slayer magic pushed at the barrier it was still trapped within, longing to get out. Whatever Eileen had done to him, it was breaking apart, but not fast enough. Fits and spurts of devil slayer magic wasn't going to be enough to kill END. _And what about Akio?_ Who knew?

Gray didn't have to wonder which room he could find Akio in because ten metres down the hall, she opened the door for him, using Jellal's body as a battering ram. The man flew effortlessly until he hit the opposite wall, then, coming to an abrupt halt, he sat there, dazed, and let it all sink in.

Gray felt rage that wasn't his own and knew Meredy was awake and fighting. He lurched through debris—broken bits of door, a metal desk leg, some bits of soggy paper. Inside the room, through dust and raining bits of insulation, Gray found Meredy against the far wall, holding her arm, a fierce snarl on her lips. For all her fury and determination, she looked worse for wear, suffering in the same way he and Juvia were. Her opponent was as eerie as ever, with her pink hair and black as pitch eyes. Akio looked damaged, though, and slightly deranged for it. Frostbite had killed half of her body, necrotized the skin and turned it blue-black. Her movements were truncated and slow, but still faster than Meredy's. As Meredy turned to assess the newcomers, Akio attacked, lunging with demon-like speed, claws bared.

Gray acted without thought, pushing at the magic-inhibiting barrier until he found a crack in the façade that magic could sneak out. A pillar of ice appeared. It hit Akio in the face hard enough that it knocked her back several steps. She snarled and redoubled her efforts, more determined than ever to get to Meredy. This time, Gray had more trouble forcing the magic out. Juvia's water magic took its place. Akio easily batted it aside. She grabbed for Meredy and was successful, twisting her arm in front of Meredy's body then grabbing her by the hair while she lay her stump against the girl's throat, cutting off her air-supply. Gray felt his own airway shorten. He sucked in breath after breath, slowly, as calmly as he could, telling himself not to panic. Panic meant a loss of control, and that almost always meant failure.

"Let her go." Breathy words weren't great for threatening. He'd be embarrassed if he wasn't so scared for Juvia and Meredy.

Akio gritted sharp teeth—only one half of her lips worked, the other side too badly damaged. "No, devil slayer. Lady Eileen told me you willingly married your senses with this girl. Your bodies experience the same pain. Which means, I don't have to mess around trying to kill you. This girl will do well enough."

Meredy's eyes were wide. She stood on tiptoe trying to ease some of the pressure on her neck. It was mostly for naught, all Gray could do was choke. _It's not real_. _You're not the one suffocating._ It didn't matter _what_ he said, he felt it as clearly as if it were. He reached for sputtering magic again, digging, digging, trying to force it out.

"Goodbye, Gray Fullbuster." Akio's fingers loosened on Merdy's hair, her arm dropped away from the girl's neck. For a split second, Gray could breathe. And then he was suffocating again as Akio adjusted her grip and grabbed Meredy by the throat. Fresh wounds spat blood down Gray's collarbone; black spots appeared before his eyes.

 _Come on, come on._ A little bit of devil slayer's magic came to him, enough to rot Akio's left leg and force her to use the wall as support. And then nothing, a dried up well.

Maker magic would have to do.

Even that was being troublesome. _Just focus._ Unable to breathe, unable to think, Gray watched Juvia fall to her knees beside him, her face as red as apples. It was tempting to join her.

* * *

Always, Natsu thought he knew who he was. Even when things were blurry and he couldn't remember what others could—things about his past, his family, the people that loved him, the life he lived before Igneel—he knew who he was in his heart. He was Natsu Dragneel, Igneel's son, Fairy Tail's fire dragon slayer, Happy's best friend, and then Lucy's, too. That was all he needed. But that was before Tartarus threatened his family. Before he almost lost everything. Now… filling in the blanks was like getting to know himself all over again. He was Natsu Dragneel, Zeref's brother, the demon END, Lucy's lover. For all of the new things, he was still Igneel's son. He thought of that to hold on to _something_ familiar, hoping that tie to his former self would make the hard decisions a little easier to bear when it came time.

Walking down the hall, scalding tile, igniting dust and melting glass effortlessly, feeling powerful and bizarre and nearly possessed, he thought, ' _Cut the thread. Cut the thread.'_ He thought of Lucy looking up with her doe eyes, shocked and uncomprehending as a possessed guard aimed his gun and pulled the trigger. Natsu's side twanged when he relieved the moment, letting him know he hadn't gotten out unscathed. _At least it's just you. At least it's not Lucy. At least she'll be okay. Maybe._ She was bleeding. _She'll be fine._

His senses tugged him into a classroom he didn't recognize, tuned into something he couldn't quite name. He saw her there, black and pink and grey, a demon on the verge of collapse but still more powerful than the girl she wrung the life out of. Meredy pushed weakly at her captor's arms, cheeks wet, mouth glistening with spit, mucus coming out of her nose. Choking someone to death was hardly pretty and hardly quick. It had gone on long enough that Meredy's heart was slowing. Natsu didn't wonder why the creature didn't do something a little more efficient, like snap her neck or tear out her heart. He could see just by looking at her that she was poisoned, demented and twisted, the worst part of his brother personified. It broke his heart. And it made him furious. He knew this creature. This was the one Zeref showed him. The one that was killing the girls. The one that stole from Lucy and tried to lure him out.

Very faintly, he was aware of Gray on the ground, fighting to just stay on his knees, and beside him, Juvia who had flirted with death so many times in the last day, all he could do was pity her. Natsu stepped around them both, knowing that they were burned by the fire he couldn't seem to shake but unable to do much about it.

The demon holding Meredy lifted her gaze and looked upon him. The only way to describe the expression on her face was reverence. "Master END."

 _Master END._ Etherious. Natsu embraced her words and felt a surge of power beneath his skin. "Let her go."

Akio's breathing increased. She was afraid, he could _feel_ it. "Lady Eileen says I must—"

There was no _time_ to argue. Not that he could. All he could feel was violence and an intense urge. He needed to get out. He even knew where he needed to go. The church's bell tower. Diplomacy was never his strong suit anyway.

Akio didn't finish her sentence. It was hard to speak without a throat. She burned down to ash before she could miss the vital body part. Meredy fell to the floor, singed, coughing, but alive.

Resigned to blood and fire, Natsu moved on. Zeref was waiting.


	29. Chapter 29

Arumadura Fairy armour was one of Erza's strongest. She donned it without going through the rigmarole of wondering if Eileen was going to make her fight, there was a gleam to the woman's eye that was as unsettling as it was unmistakable.

When the last gauntlet fell into place and the light of her magic faded, Erza said, "Put the world back as it was and call off your assassin."

Eileen raised two inhuman hands. "I cannot."

"Liar!" Erza spat. "Do it now and spare yourself some pain."

Eileen's smile was cold and hard. "No."

Wearing the Arumadura was draining; Erza had done a lot of training over the last year, though, and it was easier now, feeding it bits of magic here and there to keep it on her body and at its strongest. She summoned magic, forcing it into her twin swords, and lunged.

Eileen was caught off guard by her sudden attack but far from helpless. Quick as a snake, she dodged.

Sidestepping didn't thwart Erza, she adjusted her course. Eileen's staff put a damper on things. It hit Erza's swinging swords with enough force that the shockwave travelled up Erza's arms and into her shoulders. Everything ached for a solid five seconds. She was paralyzed. In that time, Eileen brought her staff around again and cracked Erza across the temple.

Stars exploded behind Erza's suddenly closed eyes. Her legs felt weak.

 _Don't pass out. Don't._

She forced her eyes open, forced her legs to lock, and forced her lungs to draw air in. Finally, she forced her swords up and met Eileen's next swing. There was so much magic between them, the ground rumbled and fractured, gravel pulverized, and a building five hundred meters away slid off one corner of its foundation. Someone inside screamed. The door opened and a man, his son and their dog raced out. Erza only gave them half of her attention. It was enough that Eileen got another hit in, this one in her ribs. The armour protected her from the worst of it, however the steel exploded in micro fractures.

Erza gasped like a fish out of water, momentarily in shock. It passed, and when it did, she was angry all over again. "You'll regret that."

"The only thing I regret is letting you live those years ago when I should have just drowned you," Eileen spat.

Despite herself, Erza faltered. _Don't ask. Keep going, you're wasting precious time._ Her mouth moved, a traitor. "What?"

The woman's teeth revealed themselves in a smile. "Fight, Erza."

Suddenly the truth seemed very important. "We will, after you tell me what you mean. You said earlier that we knew each other. How?"

A thin brow went up. "Very well."

Beneath Erza's feet the ground rumbled, gravel pushed aside for a rapidly growing thorn bush. _Growing_ wasn't the right word, for it didn't _look_ alive. Maybe 'expanding' would do better. Erza stepped back, light on her feet. Not light enough. Faster than a whip, a bramble snaked around her body. A thorn found her neck and pierced her skin. Erza hissed and scrabbled to get it out. She succeeded, however, Eileen's magic was cocooning her and her vision was blurring.

* * *

In a castle she didn't recognize, Erza looked through a fringe of scarlet hair that was so like her own and studied a dragon. The massive lizard cousin smelled like scales and musk and a little like blood and rot, his dinner, and last night's, still stuck in his teeth. It wasn't human he ate, not like his brothers, but livestock bred to satiate his appetite and wild animals.

"We are losing our war." His voice boomed throughout the antechamber.

Erza felt her body moving on its own accord, bringing her into the larger room, closer to the dragon. Her heart thundered; she didn't _want_ to be near it. It didn't _matter_ what Natsu said, dragons had a long and colourful history of violence towards humans, and this one, with scored scales, bloody claws and hunks of meat in his teeth wasn't exactly fortifying his claim. Her limbs wouldn't stop. Her mouth opened and a voice that wasn't hers snuck from between her lips.

"My lord Belserion, I believe I can change the tide of the battle. I've done some research; it may be possible to augment humans with your magic, to aid you in slaying the dragons. If you'll allow me to experiment…"

His response was immediate. "While your efforts are appreciated, I don't want anyone harmed, my lady."

Erza felt her head tip so she was looking at the flagstone down low. It needed to be swept and maybe washed, too, filthy with dried clay, dead leaves and other bits of outside brought in. "I will be the first to try. Please."

"We don't know the effect it will have on your body. Dragon's magic isn't _like_ human's."

"I and many others would do anything to protect our home. Please. This could be the advantage you need."

Dragon's didn't have expressive faces, yet Erza knew the beast was buckling without too much fight; they must have been very desperate indeed. "Very well."

The scene melted; events flew by so quickly that Erza felt nauseous. In a lavatory, Eileen tried the spell on herself. It hurt; she was sick for days. It passed, leaving her the same as she ever was. She tried again. And again. Finally, after what felt like many failed attempts, she made a break through and a whole new kind of magic was available to her.

On a different day, this one snow-smothered and _cold,_ in the courtyard, men an women lined up to receive her blessing. They walked away more powerful than before. Fighting ensued, human and dragon, dragon and dragon; blood and death ruled. It was all she could smell. Her hands felt perpetually wet. A face that Erza recognized appeared amongst all of the destruction.

Achnologia. Once a man, then a dragon. Erza recognized him from Eileen's perspective, too, he was a general in her army before he changed. He wasn't the first to have his human skin bow to dragon's scales, but he was the only one that survived the transformation.

He decimated everything without discrimination, dragons fell to him, humans, too. Cities and mountains and valleys. Everything he wished into ruin waltzed gladly into that fate. Every resistance mounted upon him failed. No one ever got close enough.

Just when the world had given up hope, it was over. Undefeated and unchallenged, Achnologia disappeared. Tentative peace took the land.

Time slowed. A man with dark hair appeared and took Erza's hand. "My queen. Lord Belserion is ailing."

"Thank you. I'll tend him."

"It would be my pleasure to stay by your side and help."

She allowed for it.

Time skipped like a stone touching on a pond's calm surface. Erza saw the dragon's death, she felt Eileen's suffering, and then she felt the newcomer's mouth on hers. She knew him more intimately in months that passed in seconds. They were wed, and then they were pregnant.

It took several long seconds, but Erza swallowed what Eileen was trying to show her. The realization was a cold slap in the face. She would have taken some time to digest the new—and _ludicrous_ —development, but the vision trekked onward.

The next time the world came into focus, Erza was leaning against a stone basin, the light of candles illuminating her face. Her skin was cracked, and beneath it was the darkest scales she'd ever seen. Touching them, she knew that they were a dragon's. Achnologia's image invaded her memory.

"I'm falling ill as well." Like the many men and women that had been overtaken by this peculiar illness.

Erza felt panic in her chest. She didn't succumb to it because the last time she'd seen Achnologia, he walked off the battlefield as a man and not a dragon. He had healed.

Her husband entered the room. He went white as soon as he saw her. And then his eyes narrowed. "You're one of them."

Erza in Eileen's body touched her face. "It's only temporary, a side-effect of the dragon slaying magic."

He almost looked like he wanted to believe her. Eileen reached for him, hoping to calm his nerves. He saw her left hand the same time she did and that was that. Claws and scales didn't belong on a human's body.

"Guards!"

"What are you doing?" Erza had never _felt_ such panic. It was debilitating and somehow motivating.

He stood strong. "You are under arrest, Eileen."

"Arrest? For what?"

His handsome face contorted into one she didn't know. "For being a devil. You'll spend your time in the jails until your execution date is decided."

"My execution?" Men with swords filled the small chamber.

"Put chains on her and take her to the dungeon."

"Yes, Sir," said a man in leather armour. He acted without any hesitation, wrapping Eileen and subsequently Erza in chains that were both heavy and magic-dampening. She didn't even have a fraction of her power as soon as the metal touched her skin. She was suddenly a human woman, not the sorceress her country respected and cherished.

"Please!" Erza begged with Eileen's mouth again. "I carry your child. Don't do this."

The man was cold. "Any child you carry is a devil, too. You'll both be sentenced to death."

Time skipped. The jail cell they gave her was small and stone. It stank like piss. She got a bucket to do her business in, though sometimes it wasn't changed for two weeks and she had to go on the floor. She was given bread and water once a day and rarely did she have visitors. When she did, it was someone to clean her cell, and then it was her husband. Almost used to the new way of viewing the world, Erza searched for his actual name in Eileen's memories, but either time had made her forget or she forced herself to.

A second later, Erza realized why. He came in and picked her up with gentle hands. He said he was sorry. He kissed her chin and her nose and her lips. And then he stripped her down and had her there in the cell. She let it happen because she wanted to believe. Because she wanted to go free. He came inside of her and then left her there for another three weeks. The next time he showed, she was less compliant.

The beatings began, and then the public humiliation. Strung up nude for the world to see, he burned her with heated metal, whipped her, and called her a devil's _cunnus_. Slut had never sounded so filthy. It happened again and again. The torture changed, but not the pain. She never cried, not in front of anyone.

Everything slowed and came into focus again. Erza in Eileen's body knelt on the cold floor in her cell. The door opened and her husband entered.

"Your execution day has been set. You'll be beheaded for all the world to see."

Erza knew Eileen was cynical, however her next words surprised her. "If I'm gone, who else will you lie to and fuck?"

He looked down his nose at her. "I've taken a new wife."

"Another _cunnus_ for you to force yourself upon?"

"She gives herself to me willingly unlike the last devil I mistakenly took to bed."

The rage was pure; Erza realized that it was her own, too. She was thankful when Eileen lunged. The man slapped her down, an easy feat when she was so weak and malnourished. She fell to the stone floor and lay there, hair twisted over her face, blood filling her mouth and the smell of piss burning her nose.

Then another wave of rage came. "I carry your child!" Erza's own throat felt raw with the furious scream.

"It's been _three_ years! There _is_ no child!" the man screamed back.

Eileen determination was a marvel to behold. She pushed herself upright with arms that shook and informed him, "I spelled it into stasis, never wanting to give birth in this horrid place."

His sword came out before she ever stopped talking. "Fine, you claim there's a baby inside, we'll cut it out then and prove it!"

Erza was just as shocked as her guide when the man, enraged to senselessness and pushed on by fear, approached with his sword brandished. She was _still_ in shock, right up until the moment he laid the cold metal against her skin and started slicing, just as he promised. The scales protected her some, but they weren't as tough as they could have been. Blood came. And pain.

And anger.

Screaming stopped nothing, grabbing the sword only sliced through her palms. The man was stronger, had a better vantage point standing above like some kind of vengeful devil.

Helpless and out of her mind with fear, Erza felt the back that wasn't truly hers explode in pain. Her skin flared and got dry, her teeth changed, her eye sight, too. Everything came into sharper focus.

The blade came for her again. It shucked off her skin like she herself was made of steel.

Opening her mouth, the most peculiar sound came out. A roar. The man stumbled back and hit the cell's metal bars. Powerful and vengeful herself, Eileen came on. Erza could _taste_ the blood filling her mouth. She could _smell_ the man's guts spilling across the floor.

She wanted to vomit. And she wanted to watch to make sure he got what he deserved.

The vision was replaced by a clear blue sky. Herself once more, Erza panted, still tasting blood, and dug her fingers into the gravel below her body.

"I was a dragon for a very, very long time after that." Eileen's voice was unmistakable now, Erza thought she'd recognize the woman anywhere, even out of a crowd of five hundred. She felt she knew her better than she knew herself.

"I almost forgot what it was to be human, but you were still in my womb, my last connection to humanity. Whenever I was feeling particularly beast-like, I would think of you, Erza, and the dragon would fade. I tried to make myself human again, using every spell I knew. That failed so I searched for Achnologia, knowing that he'd made the transformation himself. He was elusive.

"And then his Majesty found me. He saw through me in seconds. Mere moments later, he made me a woman once more. Indebted, I swore to serve him."

Eileen began to pace. Erza followed her movements from her place on the ground, listening to the woman's boots crunch over pulverized gravel. "It wasn't long before I realized that something was very wrong. I looked human on the outside but my heart was still a dragon's. I couldn't taste when I ate, I couldn't sleep, I couldn't feel, not the way I used to. I was detached, less human than I was even when I was locked in that jail cell being treated like an animal. I couldn't stand it. The only thing I wanted was to be the person I once was.

"A thought occurred to me—if I had my child, it might make me feel like _me_ again. His majesty warned me from the path, but I was stubborn. I gave birth with a nursemaid tending me. Months passed. I cared for you as any mother might, but _I felt nothing_. Not even a little bit of love. I realized that what I felt for all those years while you were trapped inside was nothing but hope. I was reaching for what I _thought_ I should feel, not reality.

"You, on the other hand, _felt everything._ You loved, you cried, and you silenced when someone would give you a soother dipped in strawberry jam. You had everything I wanted and you were too young and too dumb to realize it. I began to resent you. And then I had a thought. I wanted to tie us together. I wanted to enchant myself into your body and live out the life I had stolen away from me."

Erza found her words in the silence that came. "You wanted to kill me and take my body in order to live like you used to." _You believe her?_ Yes, yes she did. It was insane, but everything she experienced… it was too real to be anything but truth.

Eileen wasn't apologetic. "It was my _right_. I carried you for _four hundred years_ , Erza. I protected you from those that would destroy you. I deserved another chance, and that was to be my reward." Her pacing stopped. She fixed Erza with hate-filled eyes.

"You must not have done it," Erza said, looking for a woman with a shred of decency. "I am still me and you are still you."

"No, I tried," Eileen replied. "It never worked. I took you into the cold winter night and dropped you in a dingy alley and never looked back."

"I wish I could say your circumstances have made you a monster but I think you were always that way, you just needed the right environment in which to grow," Erza spat as soon as she was able.

Eileen laid her inhuman hand against her chest and pouted. "Does it hurt you to know that you were cast aside, useless gutter trash?"

Erza clenched her fist, fingers digging through gravel, and summoned another armour, this one more powerful than the last. "No. I'm glad. In fact, I think I should be thanking you." Getting up was clumsy, nothing felt _quite right_. Her neck throbbed, sore, her joints hurt from the abuse she'd given them. She was determined, though, so all of that fell to the wayside. "I'll repay you the best way I know how, by putting you out of your misery. You won't have to long for something you can never have again."

The swords she summoned were the unforgiving kind.

* * *

Wendy opened her eyes and processed what was happening just in time to avoid a sword strike, falling to the earth (cobblestone and limestone now, not the concrete of the school's front yard) and rolling away just as Erza taught her. The sword dug into the earth inches from her head. She was up again in seconds, bumping into the body at her side.

"Wendy!" Cheria's voice stopped her from tearing away from her body.

The sword came again. Wendy acted on instinct, summoning wind enough to blow her attacker away. Able to _think_ for a moment without being swung at, she did all she could to take in her surroundings and digest her situation.

She was out of the school's perimeter. In fact, she could see the building kilometers away. _How?_ But _how_ wasn't important. The bodies around her were. Most were on the ground, bleeding from one place or another. Some moaned, some's clothes and skin smoked, burned, some did neither, killed or unconscious. Blasts and screams and the smell of smouldering skin came to her nose. Her eyes scoured the area. Most people held swords, some spears, some wielded magic, some a combination of the three.

Wendy picked a familiar face from the crowd: the white haired Mirajane. She donned a soul that was entirely new and ferociously attacked a group of sword-wielding men. Next to her, Freed pulled his sword from his scabbard and blocked one man at his front. Not the woman at his back, though. She came in with a spear and stabbed at him. It would have sunk into his back and killed him instantly except Evergreen was there to knock it wild. The blade dug into his leg instead. It was still a fatal wound, his carotid artery hit, but he'd bleed to death in minutes rather than be gutted and die instantly. He fell.

Wendy's mouth went dry and filled with the tangy taste of fear. Her mind put the happening events in a neat line so she could draw her conclusion. _It's a battle._ And people were getting hurt. She moved without thinking, hurrying over fallen soldiers to Freed's side, hoping to heal him before he bled out.

Her path was littered with dangers, swords and battling mages. Wendy dodged them all except for a bearded and armoured man that stepped in front of her and lifted his hands. Obeying the call of his magic, the ground gave up its minerals. Quartz as clear as glass condensed and moved as it was never meant to, more like a snake than a stone. It jabbed for Wendy's middle. There was no _time_ to react. A millisecond before it gutted her, it fell short. Wendy looked up to see why: Cheria had hit him with a wind strong enough that his neck bent weirdly on his broad shoulders, broken. He fell to the ground.

The god slayer panted, pale. "Are you okay, Wendy?"

She nodded, too shocked to form words. After that, Cheria did what she could to hold off the enemy while Wendy did her best to heal.

* * *

Even with Riley's body several rooms behind her now, it was all Lucy could see. She felt trapped in one of Midnight's illusions, chased down and haunted by what Riley was after Natsu…

 _Get out. get out. get out of my head._ She clutched her shoulder and stumbled down the hall as fast as her feet would take her. She thought of Natsu instead of Riley, desperate to clear her mind of the gore. All she could see was the coldness in his eyes when he looked back over his shoulder that one final time.

 _'He's END, Lucy.'_ Gray's memory wouldn't _shut the fuck up_. _'Did you not hear me?'_

END. Natsu Dragneel. END.

 _No._

She kept rejecting the idea. It wouldn't let her be.

 _Please._

Swinging around a corner, she caught sight of her quarry. Sort of. Just a glimpse of the coat she'd given to him. He disappeared again around another hallway, a ghost in flame that left smoke in his wake, clouds of it, choking and rotting her lungs.

"Natsu!" His name came out far quieter than Lucy planned. "Natsu!"

He didn't slow. And she couldn't catch up. _He's too fast._ He wasn't, though—how could he when he left behind huge puddles of blood from a bullet wound that had been meant for her?—it was just that she was moving too slowly. Her shoulder bled generously every time her heart hammered. Her vision swam, lungs rejecting the smoke-filled air as quickly as they drew it in.

The hallway seemed impossibly long. At the junction, Lucy rested and panted, looking down the other corridor. She didn't stay stationary for long. Squinting, she saw a figure crumpled against the wall and recognized his dark blue hair.

"Jellal."

He didn't stir.

 _Maybe he's dead._

It seemed like _nothing_ could live in the hell that the school had become. It was too hot, there was too little air, and the hallways felt way, way too small.

Golden light filled the space before her. At first, Lucy thought it was Loke or another one of her spirits come to drag her through the smoke. Then she realized it was the light of scalding flame. Heat travelling through the concrete made it impossible to stay leaning against the wall.

 _Maybe we're all going to die._

Lucy took in another stabilizing breath and got moving again.

* * *

It was far too hot, yet Gray was incapable of closing his dry eyes as Natsu bypassed him and went straight for the demon. She looked up at him and called him master, she uttered his name, END, and stood there as still as a statue as he tore out her throat and burned her to less than ash.

Gray's mark hungered for her soul. It hungered for END. The need made him blind, and yet, he was incapable of moving, a slave to Meredy's pain and Juvia's and his own. Three was, in fact, a crowd.

In the seconds that followed Akio's death, the only noise was the crackling of flames, and then Gray heard her voice.

"Natsu!"

Following the sound, he found Lucy leaning against the doorframe, white-faced. She clutched her shoulder, drenched in blood again.

"Natsu!"

Gray knew she didn't see he and Juvia, she didn't see the creature Natsu reduced to a pile of ash with hardly a thought. She only saw Natsu. And maybe, _finally_ , she saw END, too.

 _Or maybe not,_ Gray thought as she pushed away from the wall and came into the room. "Natsu—Natsu please, look at me."

Gray lifted his gaze and saw Natsu's shoulders tense. The fire around his body flared out, whether on purpose or an automatic reaction, Gray didn't know. Lucy didn't stop, too focused to sense the coming danger.

In the seconds to come, the devil slayer realized that he was wrong, he _could_ move, if it meant stopping Lucy from joining Akio. She wouldn't look quite so good as a pile of ash. His methods were crude. Reaching out as she passed, he grabbed her ankle and tugged with his remaining strength. Uncoordinated and hurt, Lucy lost her balance quicker than she could prepare for. She went down hard, twisting her arm beneath her body. She cried.

Natsu burned a hole through the building and left without looking back.

Lucy gathered breath again and strength to rise. "Natsu!"

Gray squeezed her ankle and rasped, "Stop it, Lucy."

"Let go of me." She tried to dislodge him by jerking her leg out of his grasp. "I have to get to him. I have to bring him back."

He wasn't gentle as he said, "He's gone."

"He's not gone! I can still see him." He was a bright torch even by the daylight. "I need to—"

Gray growled, "He's not Natsu anymore, Lucy. He's Zeref's dog. If you go after him, he'll kill you."

Lucy jerked her leg again, this time breaking Gray's hold. She was up and on her feet despite her injuries and hobbling after him. Gray called her back, seeing only heartache in her future. Lucy didn't listen; soon, she was out of range. In the end, the devil slayer quieted and willed Meredy to rise. It wasn't a call she could rightly ignore, connected as they were.

* * *

Laxus didn't bother ducking swords or dodging magical attacks to get to his target. He annihilated everyone that dared to come near him, pushing his dragon slaying lacrima to the very brink of its integrity in the interest of asking his questions. The blonde woman had her eye on him. She swiped at Bickslow and Evergreen, and then at Elfman. She left the second eldest Strauss with a gouge in his chest that would scar if he lived through the rest of today. Elfman didn't go down, too dumb, too stubborn. He picked her up and threw her like the monster he could be. She ragdolled against the ground, bouncing, bouncing ever closer. Laxus lost sight of her for an instant. When he found her again, she was on her feet and looking furious.

It looked like she went for Elfman again, her body angling toward him. Laxus blinked. She was there and then she was not. Elfman was standing, and then he was not. Lisanna's strained voice penetrated the clang of steel on steel, screaming her brothers name.

 _I don't want to know_ , Laxus thought. Knowing was a distraction. There wasn't anything he could do for Elfman other than find his attacker anyway. He was no healer, better a breaking things than mending, always.

A woman stepped before him to block his way. Her sword searched for his heart; Laxus used the steel as a conductor, sending so much energy through her body that her heart stopped. She fell to the ground without much fight and twitched.

"That wasn't very fair."

Laxus looked up from the fallen enemy and found his quarry closer than he expected, her gaze settled on his. Blonde and brown eyed, a wry smile on her face and soaked to the elbow in blood, her unsettling appearance and the peculiar magic coming from her skin more than made up for her small stature and thin frame. Looks could be deceiving, he knew that more than well enough.

"You were there the other night."

"There?"

Laxus let the sound of the battle drift into the background, though he was aware of the soldiers fighting both at their location _and_ marching over the hill. They would converge on Fairy Tail's location soon, but there was time for answers, he hoped.

"At the guild hall the other night, when Fairy Tail's master was set on fire." Saying it aloud made him feel sick. He didn't want to think about it. And yet, he needed answers.

The woman's wry smile widened. "Here I told Eileen you wouldn't remember us. Guess I was wrong."

Laxus' vision narrowed. Someone was thrust into his side. He rocked, temporarily thrown off balance. He only adjusted his footing, not in any state to defend himself from an attack. Thankfully, none came. "Did you do that to him?"

"Set him on fire?" She rolled her sword in her wrist, working out some kink. "No. I gave him a new smile, though. What did you think of it? He looks better now, right?"

Laxus' lungs were too small to draw breath. He expelled it instead and charged heedlessly, magic in his hands. He got in exactly one hit. The woman's face burned and blistered immediately, her clothes charred, the ground beneath her feet where the charge grounded turned black, the grass burning immediately, and then everything froze.

* * *

In a time where Natsu didn't feel much of anything except the need to get to the church and be his brother's deliverance, he felt time snag and try to hold him in place. It was a spell; even half blind and driven, he knew that.

It didn't take much of a course change to find the source of the problem. On the edge of town where the guild hall was not supposed to be, Natsu found a most peculiar sight. The majority of Fairy Tail's returned force was locked in combat with soldiers that bore a strange mark. He knew without any sort of clarification that these people belonged to Zeref.

He ran, though it felt like walking, over rubble, between bodies, moving through a suspended world. The only thing that bunged up his need to get to Zeref was the sick feeling in his chest.

 _'Do you know how many lives have been lost because of you_?'

He was seeing first hand. Elfman lay on the ground, a glazed look in his eye. He was cut bellybutton to sternum. Evergreen knelt over him, coaxing his body to stone. Natsu processed that: she was trying to put Elfman in some sort of stasis so he didn't bleed out. It wasn't clear if he was alive or not to benefit from her efforts.

Beside them, Lisanna was trapped trying to defend them from a coming attack, a much larger man wielding a sword. The arc he was coming in on would bypass her weak defense, leaving her much like her brother with a hole in her stomach.

Though he wasn't sure _why_ he could move around while the others were stuck, Natsu went to Lisanna first and burned her attacker from the earth. He was turning, focusing on Happy lifting a scared looking Wendy from a crowd of soldiers when he heard the _shink_ of a sword coming free of its scabbard. He followed the noise and found the culprit, a woman with hair almost as golden as Lucy's. Her face was burned on one side and her hands shook.

She found Natsu almost at the same time. Shock kept her arcing blade from cutting Laxus' throat deep enough to kill him; instead, the stationary man received a deep cut from ear to chin. He would scar.

The woman's shaking hands wouldn't hold her blade anymore, not with Laxus' magic still wreaking havoc on her nervous system. It fell to the ground, just like she almost did. "Master END."

Like the demon, this woman's words sounded reverent.

Natsu didn't take time to ask questions. He saw what needed to be done and acted, attacking the woman with a ferocity he'd never felt quite so intensely before. Unlike the demon, she defended herself, lifting her sword's scabbard to ward off his attack.

"You shouldn't be able to move," she protested between blows. "I've—"

Natsu swung for her face with fire that was hotter than ever. She fell on contact, her already burned skin blistering some more. Her scream was pleasing. She _should_ suffer, shouldn't she? Not that he knew anything about her, but if she was his brother's, she was as perverted as Zeref, misled and lost. Desperately, she searched for her dropped sword and found it.

Natsu wasn't afraid. Standing over her, he reached for power he didn't know was his. It obeyed him, flames coming to his hand. The ground beneath the blonde's body smouldered, her boots and her clothing melted to her body, she screamed and screamed; her sword went next, the very tip melting into a useless puddle.

' _Natsu_.'

Natsu felt Zeref on his periphery, calling, waiting. The need to get to him was overwhelming once more. He looked away from the blonde. She wouldn't live for much longer anyway.

In turning, he saw Lucy very briefly. It was only then he realized she was following him, though ineffectually. Several hundred meters back, she'd been hobbling along until she too got snagged in time's clutch. She held her shoulder, her now-pale lips open. He imagined she'd been calling his name. _What does it sound like coming from her mouth?_

He couldn't say.

While it made him sad to forget, it was a price he was willing to pay.

Zeref's voice was loud and clear.

Natsu followed it, leaving behind Lucy and Laxus and the woman whose name he'd never know.

 _Maybe you'll forget them all._

Death took without discrimination.

* * *

"I can't," Meredy sobbed.

Gray wanted to shake her. He wanted to scream. Instead he said, "Focus. This is _your_ magic."

"I know!" she cried, "But _you_ did something."

It didn't take much to think of what. That goddamn stone. The anger he felt, Juvia experienced as well. Even laying exhaustedly on the floor, she sniffled. Gray felt his own eyes wet with tears. "This is so goddamn fucking _frustrating!"_ He couldn't escape her, she couldn't escape him, and Meredy was the vehicle.

"Calm down," Meredy begged. "I can't focus with you screaming."

She couldn't focus _anyway_ ; they all knew it.

 _Then just…_

"Gray," Meredy warned, translating his thoughts before he had himself.

"I have to."

"If things don't work out…"

She was scared. Her fear was almost debilitating. Juvia fed off of it and Gray almost succumbed to it, too. "Stop. Stop it."

" _You_ stop. It's not just your life, it's all of ours!" Meredy replied.

"It's _everyone_ if he keeps going!" Gray raged back.

"Please. Think about what you're doing."

Everyone knew he _had._ This would be the greatest and worst thing he'd ever do. It was the only thing he felt like he was born to do. It was the only thing he felt like he was _capable_ of doing.

 _I can't._ Killing Natsu made him feel sick.

 _I have to._ Not doing it made him feel worse.

He got to his feet, taking strength from his connection with Juvia. She was uncertain; it was unclear how much of that emotion belonged to her and how much was Meredy's.

"I know you'll do the right thing when it comes time," Juvia said, though she hardly needed to speak aloud.

Gray interpreted her words the only way he could; she thought he'd choke when the time came.

Gray didn't know _what_ he thought.

Meredy did, however. "You'll kill us all!"

It felt like it, too.

"Wait and let me figure out the link. With time I can—"

Walking in segmented steps, Gray told her, "Time is one thing we don't have."

He followed Lucy who followed Natsu, thinking of how he'd kill the demon END. _They're not two separate beings,_ he thought. It was easier to think of them that way. That's why he refused.

His resolution shouldn't come easy.

His back felt bowed beneath the decision's weight.


	30. Chapter 30

Laxus' face was on fire. His front was soaked. The smell of blood was in his nose and the taste of iron was on his lips. People screamed in his ear, bodies thrashed against one another. Beyond them was that marching force, much closer than they were seconds before. The woman before him, the blonde with the sword and the ever-present smile, wasn't smiling now. She was on the ground, shivering so badly her teeth clacked. Her sword was loose in her hand, the metal mangled by what looked like heat; her eyes were focused a million miles away.

In the second of reprieve, Laxus allowed himself to touch his face. His hand came away bloody, his skin _burned._ With the movement, the woman seemed to come unstuck. She got her to feet, her eyes found his and refocused. "I must help Master END." She sidestepped him and started away.

 _END?_ Laxus' heart beat hard despite himself. _That's fear._ It was anger, too. "Don't turn your back on me!" Speaking was agony. His head spun. _Is that pain? Blood loss?_ _Both, because you're bleeding too much._ Not that he could remember _why_. _She must have gotten a hit on you_.

The woman kept on her course, stepping around her fallen soldiers remorselessly on feet that were mostly exposed in ruined boots. Her skin was badly damaged, bleeding and raw. Laxus didn't remember her having those injuries a second ago. Anyone that tried to attack her (a startled looking Lisanna for one) was slashed at, pushed back, kicked until they retreated and then she was moving again.

"Hey! Did you hear me?" Laxus lurched after her, feeling slow and dazed.

She did not.

 _She's the one that killed Gramps. Are you just going to let her walk away?_ He used his fury as a magnifier of his magic and his determination. His foot caught on a rock, dragging him down to his knees; Laxus allowed it to happen, planting his palms on the ground and using a vein of copper to deliver a heart-stopping bolt of lightning.

Somehow, it went awry, spreading into a wide radius rather than focusing as Laxus had hoped. Several men and women in the blonde's vicinity fell to the ground, dead. The unintentional victory went uncelebrated, there were more approaching soldiers to take the fallen's place, coming at a run with their swords drawn. _How did they get so close?_ There wasn't any time to wonder, though. The woman ahead stopped in her tracks.

"You are very, very stupid, Makarov's grandson." She turned on her heel and faced him again. Laxus felt at a disadvantage there on the ground with the woman towering above him, even if she was several meters away. "My name is Dimaria Yesta. I am a member of the Spriggan 12, Emperor Spriggan's elite force."

"I don't give a fuck what you're called," Laxus said. _Get up._ It felt like his head had almost been cut off. _Fuck._ He wanted to touch it again but didn't dare for fear of showing a weakness. _Get the hell up. Stand._ Miraculously, his feet planted beneath his body; he got his bulk vertical and didn't even stagger. _Fucking bully for me._

"You should. There is a lot in a name." She adjusted her grip on her malformed sword. Laxus wondered if it had always been that way. _No._ He felt like he was missing something very, very important.

"A name defines you. Yours, for instance, finds its roots in _Lux,_ light." She approached, her bare heels digging into the gravel, leaving behind bloody footprints. "And _Lexus_ , for law. During his time in Alvarez, Makarov spoke a great deal of his grandson Laxus. Proud, conceited, but not without cause, I've been told. I'm sure there were times you felt you _were_ Fairy Tail's law, correct? Judge. Jury. Executioner _._ " She got more frantic with every inch of space she closed between them.

Laxus pressed his magic down into his palms, not giving himself an opportunity to balk. "And what does your name mean?"

"Dimaria? Nothing too biblical." Her mouth quirked. "My second name, though, is much more interesting. Chronos. Do you know what that is, Makarov's grandson?"

A sudden influx of power made his balls shrink up into his body. Laxus' mouth was too dry to answer.

"Time, Laxus. Let me tell you something, when the Gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers, and you pray for the same thing as anyone else: _time._ I will deliver." She stopped her approach and closed her eyes. Her body glowed. "God soul."

Laxus watched in numb awe as a false god walked amongst men. When time took him hostage again, he had no defense.

* * *

Wendy blinked, feeling like she was coming from a dream, and expelled a short, panicked breath, expecting to feel a sword sink into her heart, or a magical attack wreak havoc on her body. Or flight, because Happy had shown up just as a man was gearing up to cut her naval to chin, and lifted her into the air. Peculiarly, she was on the ground now, standing on her own two feet. She felt no cold press of blade on skin, heard no cry of battle. She could smell blood and sword oil and leather and burned skin. And she could smell…

Turning, she saw the group of soldiers that had been closing in on her position. They were absolutely stationary. One's mouth was open, a cry on his lips so vicious, he spat. The spittle was frozen in the air. Across from him, another soldier was in the process of realizing Wendy wasn't where she was supposed to be, angry expression making way for confusion.

Sound—the squeak of leather, the draw of breath—encouraged Wendy to keep looking. It didn't take much effort. Turning, she found her. " _Ultear."_

Ultear Milkovich, placing a frozen Happy to the ground, Ultear Milkovich who turned to an equally frozen Cheria and touched her face gently. Ultear Milkovich that was _supposed to be dead_. Cheria came alive, picking up exactly where she left off: drawing a huge breath for a god slayer's roar. The magic faded almost immediately as she perceived something had changed.

"What—"

"Ultear," Wendy cut in. "How—"

"We have seconds," Ultear said shortly, interrupting them both. "This is the only place I exist. This woman," she turned and pointed a neatly trimmed nail to a blonde that had been approaching Laxus but was now, too, trapped in time's clutch, though Wendy could feel her breaking out of its hold with an excessive amount of magic. "Is a takeover mage abusing Chronos' power. She has no regard for time or its intricacies."

"Chronos?" Cheria echoed.

"Yes."

"The god of time."

Ultear's voice was clipped. "Yes."

Wendy wrestled to catalogue everything Ultear was saying. "She has god soul."

Ultear winced, feeling something neither Wendy nor Cheria could besides a sudden flood of power. "And an unprecedented control over time. She's breaking from my hold. Listen closely. As soon as that spell is completed and she mimics Chronos, there won't be anyone that can stop her. She will flatten Laxus Dreyar, she will tear Mirajane apart, she will—"

Wendy channeled Erza one more time, not interested in feeling any more fear than she already did. "We get it."

Ultear nodded. "There is a way to stop her. Third origin."

"Third origin."

"Allow me to unlock it and it will make you powerful enough to defeat her," Ultear explained.

Wendy was the first to forget the pain of discovering her second origin and volunteer—anything to keep the people she loved safe. "Do it."

That flood of power came again. Ultear's already pale face got sweaty. "There is a catch. Releasing your third origin comes at a cost."

"Anything."

"You'll never be able to use magic again," Ultear said.

Wendy's stomach churned; she faltered, conviction shaken. "Ever?"

"Only one of you need do it," Ultear said. "Quickly. Yes, or no."

"I'll do it," Cheria's voice was as quiet as a whisper.

Wendy felt her reservations go up in smoke. "No. I'll do it. It's my guild in trouble, let me."

"Don't be stupid, Wendy," Cheria replied. She pushed Wendy back and stood tall in front of a waning Ultear. "Please."

"Cheria—"

"We don't have _time_ to bicker!" Ultear said. Her hold on her spell slipped; over her shoulder, the blonde woman inched more into her takeover form before the spell caught again and she stopped.

Wendy pushed past them both. "It's decided. It's my family that needs to be protected. I'll do it. Besides." She glanced back over her shoulder. "Everyone is going to need a healer, Cheria. You're better than me."

"That's not true," Cheria complained.

Wendy stopped listening. Ultear's hold on time completely disintegrated and Chronos came free. The dragon slayer called on her dragon force and attacked before anyone could object. She had surprise on her side, and a year of training with Erza Scarlet. She hit the woman with everything she had, summoning air powerful enough to tear an average person apart. It blew Laxus to the ground, along with several other clashing bodies. The god-imposter not only took the attack but withstood it.

Without drawing breath, Wendy went after her again, wishing for Carla's wings but making due with her own two feet. Air gathered beneath her body and lifted her from the ground; she used it as a battering ram to hit the takeover mage in the chest.

There was never a connection. Two hands clamped around Wendy's arm and then she was flat on her back on the ground, looking up at a sky too blue to be true. Her vision hazed.

"Another dragon slayer." The woman's takeover was complete; she even _sounded_ godly, cruel and temperamental and unforgiving. Wendy shivered despite herself and tried to rise. She was hurt; her head ached and was wet. Her vision blurred more. _Not again._ The darkness of days past felt close once more. "A god slayer, and a time manipulating wraith." She never took her eyes off Wendy. "A surprise, I thought I'd be tearing Makarov's favorite apart, but I adapt quickly. In here, where I control every passing moment, there is time to take care of you all."

Wendy felt Ultear's magic rise and waited to feel empowered. _Come on, come on._ By the time the energy faded, she felt no different.

"You're wrong." The woman's face was ingrained in Wendy's memory, she didn't need to see Ultear to perfectly picture her as she spoke. "Time is never something to be controlled. You can hold it for mere moments, but it will always move forward again, and with a vengeance."

"Wise words from someone that has never held true power."

"On the contrary," Ultear said, "I'm someone that has held true power and lost everything."

Wendy felt fingers press into her temples. Cheria appeared overtop of her. There were tears in her blue eyes; the edges of her mouth was lined with worry. "Please stop getting hurt, Wendy. This is the last time I can help you."

Magic rolled into her body before she could ask what Cheria meant. Her head stopped hurting, though her hair was still wet with blood. Cheria came into sharp focus. Her skin was luminous. Wendy found her voice. "What have you done?"

"Please don't be angry." Cheria brushed her fingers over Wendy's cheekbone. "I am a god slayer; this is what I was born to do. Let me protect you."

Wendy was still processing the feeling of betrayal when Cheria stood, resigned, and faced the realest god she'd ever seen.

* * *

"Interesting swords."

Erza squeezed the hilts and slashed at the woman turning dragon. All she could think was _I'm not a dragon slayer. I don't_ kill _dragons. No one kills dragons._ Certainly no one killed the queen of dragons, former or not. _That's just fear,_ a more stubborn part of her said. She had _no fucking time_ for fear.

Eileen sidestepped her attack rather than deflect it. "Where did you find them?"

Erza cataloged her reluctance to touch the blades, thinking there was a reason. "They were given to me by a travelling priest." Entertaining the woman gave herself some time to _focus._ "A very peculiar man who told me woe was stepping into my path. He thought these would clear it for me. He called them Orion's swords."

"The blades of a hunter."

"Blades that have known dragon blood." Erza came in with an overhanded swing at the same time as she cut up from below.

Eileen again sidestepped her attack, not so easily distracted. "Some say that since that day, regular blood hasn't been able to satisfy them."

Erza forced herself to smile glibly. "Allow me to verify that myth." The steel hummed in her hand, making her feel like _I can do this_. She let ancient magic guide her strikes and was rewarded when one blade bit into Eileen's forearm. The skin necrotized immediately. The woman hissed and threw a horrible insult her way. Erza redoubled her efforts.

* * *

Rattled down to her very bones, Levy clutched short, dying grass and breathed shallowly. Her stomach was trying to crawl out of her body, her mouth kept watering. She spat again and again until the feeling of disorientation and nausea passed. When she was finally able to, she looked up and found Gajeel. His council jacket was all askew, the collar up and digging into his cheek as he lay on his stomach upon the ground, the sickness worse for him. Beyond his body, Levy looked at the great crystalline expanse of ocean. _How?_ She pushed _how_ out of her head when she saw a myriad of ships at the docking port, men and women pouring out of their hulls in colours Levy didn't recognize, holding swords and spears and axes, daggers and a slew of other weapons. Anyone that opposed them was cut down.

 _Oh._

So much blood. Lightheaded, Levy watched dazedly as a Magnolia native pushed back a man with a dagger only to be stabbed in the temple. He fell, limp, and was left to be trampled by the invading force.

 _Oh._

They were getting closer.

Levy scrambled to her feet, feeling faint. When she signed up for the Magic Council, this kind of battle was never on her radar. War didn't come to Fiore, and when it did…

 _Don't fret. Fight._

She was aware of Gajeel getting to his feet behind her and swearing colourfully. She couldn't take her eyes off the approaching force. _There are too many._ A silent army, marching mercilessly, killing without thought.

 _Do something._ Anything at this point. Levy felt the tug of Gajeel's magic. Seconds later, iron spikes exploded from the ground, building a barricade. Inspired, Levy gathered as much magic as she could and encouraged a hole to form in the earth. In seconds, more than half of the approaching force had the ground taken out from below their feet. People screamed; suddenly, the army wasn't just a faceless invading force, they were a group of people with voices that could hurt. _Are there broken legs,_ Levy wondered, _arms? Anyone impale themselves on their own weapons?_ She didn't know how she should feel about that possibility, glad because that meant less soldiers to fight, sick because she helped take someone's life away?

Trapped in her own internal war, Levy didn't notice the arrow shot her way until another voice, this one new, though not unfamiliar, yelled her name. She was too slow, so the newcomer pushed her bodily out of the way. The fall to the ground was long. Gravel and cobble dug into Levy's ribs and her elbows, white hair went up her nose and in her mouth. It was a state that lasted seconds, then Carla was standing and pulling Levy up as well. Levy chanced a glance at where she'd been. The arrow pegged into the ground halfway up the bolt. The enemy might have been barricaded. They weren't helpless, though.

A figure towering over all the rest stepped through the enemy forces, a dark cloud following in his wake. Those closest to him fell to the ground, pale and lifeless.

"Are they dead?" Carla hushed. "His own force?"

Gajeel was boisterous to the end. "Who the fuck is this clown?"

Levy felt the power emanating from him and conveyed, "He's an etherious demon."

An etherious demon that traversed the pit in the earth like it wasn't there at all, the very air carrying him over its depths. On the other side, he touched Gajeel's iron; it rusted and fell to the ground like it had been rotting in the weather for hundreds of years.

Gajeel straightened and shucked off his jacket. "Looks like we got some action, Levy." He looked at Carla in her human form. He didn't say as much but Levy knew Gajeel well enough to know he wished for Pantherlily instead.

"We'll stand until we fall," Carla said in that determined way she had.

Some of Gajeel's worry faded. Levy's, on the other hand, skyrocketed watching the dying grass shrivel and turn black beneath the approaching demon's feet. The ground seemed a lot closer, falling a lot more possible, with every step he took.

* * *

Swallowing made his swollen throat protest loudly, so did breathing. Gray felt out of shape limping along after an injured Lucy Heartfilia. She was in his field of view now at least, even if Natsu wasn't. He was still easy to find. Follow the trail of burning destruction. Everything he came into contact with was either ash or cinders, the earth barren where his feet fell, trees stripped of leaves and bark, smoking husks now.

"Lucy!" Calling her name hurt like a sonofabitch. Gray forced his voice louder. "Lucy!"

Lucy looked back over her shoulder, hair whipping around her face in the growing wind, eyes large and scared. "Go away!"

"Get back here!" She was a little closer now. Maybe he was still faster than her, she was slow with her bleeding shoulder. _And you with your ribs?_ And a cacophony of other injuries. They seemed to be adding up.

Lucy ran harder. Gray ran smarter. Calling on his maker magic, he froze the ground solid below Lucy's feet. She continued on as she was for another five steps, momentum and good luck carrying her, then she hit a patch of ice that was slicker than the rest and fell gracelessly. It looked like it hurt. Her sob confirmed it. His heart tugged. Always a fool, he slowed to see if she was alright.

"Are you hurt?"

She pushed herself up with her good arm and shook her hair from her face. The glare she wore let him know in no uncertain terms that she was feeling hostile. "Get away from me." She started to rise, feet slipping twice.

Gray grabbed her elbow and helped her up, hoping to redeem himself a little; she looked so awkward with her minced shoulder. Gently, he suggested, "Go back to the school."

Lucy jerked out of his grasp and started on her course again. She almost went down again and threw her arms out to stabilize herself. Her cry of pain made Gray feel sick. "Lucy."

"Get away from me."

"You have to stay here." He could maybe kill Natsu. If Lucy wasn't watching, begging him to stop, crying and breaking all over again. He didn't think she'd give him another chance to console her, not after they both fucked up so hard the first time.

She whipped around, Lyssa personified, all mad rage and frenzy. All she was missing was a menagerie of rabid animals. " _You_ have to stop!"

Gray acted instead of argued. They were running out of time. Ice obeyed his will, stretching from the rink he'd created and encasing Lucy's legs. "I'm sorry."

Her face blanked as she adjusted to this new turn of events. And then she got _furious_. Her magic came out of nowhere; Loke sprung from a gate without much provocation. He faced Gray, a tense look on his face.

"This is how we're going to do this?" Gray asked.

"If we have to," Lucy replied. "Release me."

"I can't do that, Lucy." He looked to Loke. "You know I'm right."

"And I know what Lucy wants," Loke replied.

Gray's devil slayer magic pushed even harder at his skin, closer to breaking free of Eileen's hold. _And to making you mindless._ He already felt like he was there. He couldn't control his volume. "And you know what's best for her!"

Loke dropped his gaze.

"I don't want to make you fight," Lucy said. "Let me go, Gray."

Gray's fingers creaked, nails biting into his palm. "No."

Loke looked sick saying, "Then we have no choice."

"I guess not." Gray thought of Juvia and Meredy experiencing everything he did. _'You'll kill us all.'_ Or not. He didn't think Lucy was a match for him. He set aside feelings and guilt and worry and called his magic. This time, the devil slayer trapped inside gained a little more leeway. The first strike was his, swiping at Loke with a fist full of ice so cold, Loke's forearm all the way up into his fingers turned black. The spirit paled, in pain, Gray pushed down the sickness he felt. _Loke will heal._ It was Natsu that would not.

* * *

Magnolia's bell tower stood proud beside Kardia Cathedral, pillars punched into the earth, man-made taproots huge, concrete cylinders. At the base of the northern-most pillar, Zeref stood. Wind grabbed his toga and pulled it tight against his legs, swept his hair in front of his onyx eyes and carried his scent away from Natsu. Even without the aid of that sense, Natsu would know his brother anywhere. They were so tightly connected now.

Zeref stood alone but his people were nearby. Natsu found them in Magnolia's shadows, ready to wreak havoc at Zeref's command. Natsu hobbled when he wanted to run, rushing, rushing now, needing to be at Zeref's side more than ever when his brother was in view.

Gale force wind grabbed his fire and tugged it away from him; it was always replenished. Because he was born of flame.

Zeref waited patiently for Natsu to close the distance. His face went through a myriad of emotions in those seconds, longing, hope, fear. His magic pushed out from his body, a black wave that buffeted Natsu's skin and pricked. Flowers and trees died, the concrete on the tower pocked, rotting, too.

"Brother." Zeref whispered. Natsu heard him clearly and followed the sound of Zeref's voice when the world was too encased in killing black magic to see. Seconds passed in a blur; Natsu's feet knew where to go. A hand closed around his shoulder and held him in place. Some of the magic cleared, allowing Zeref to come into focus in the gray light, the sun's rays just barely penetrating the black cloud. "You remember."

"I remember." Natsu's voice cracked, throat dry. _It's just fear._

"It's okay to be afraid," Zeref said, reading him clearly.

And he was afraid. shuddering like he'd never before. Yet, he was ready. "I have a condition."

Zeref's eyes bore into his. "Name it."

"Call off the attack," Natsu said. "Make all of your people go away."

"Done." Zeref lifted his fist. A man with a huge grey beard stepped from the shadows of the bell tower and disappeared. "August will ensure my will is carried out."

 _Can it be so easy?_ He wanted to believe Zeref but didn't know about this newcomer. "How do you know you can trust him?" It was one thing to say something would be done and another entirely to follow through with the action. "Maybe once you're gone, they'll continue fighting." The thought was unbearable. Once he was gone, Fairy Tail was on its own.

"Watch." Zeref turned his eyes toward the horizon. Natsu followed his gaze. A moment passed, two, then as one, the black blotches that coated the coast started moving back toward the ships, and likewise, the force that marched on the guild hall stopped and reversed their course.

"They're here on my behest. No one wants a war," Zeref said.

Natsu expelled a breath that was all nerves and admitted one more time, "I don't want to die."

"I know. We'll do it together, as we did everything together when we were young." Zeref held open his arms.

Natsu hesitated long enough to think of Lucy and Happy and everyone else he loved. When he stepped into Zeref, his eyes were dry; the fire was too hot to allow for anything else.

* * *

If Lucy thought Gray would go easy on her, she was sorely mistaken. Loke took hit after hit, dishing out, but never giving as good as he got. Gray was fury. Gray was terror. He was _serious_. He wanted Natsu's blood and he was going to put Lucy down to get it.

 _Gods._

She held her breath as Gray wound back, hand coated in sharp ice, and punched Loke square in the chest. The spirit flew back, coming to rest at Lucy's frozen feet. There he gasped for breath, pale, skin black everywhere Gray had hit: his face, his knuckles, his arms, and Lucy was sure, if she could see beneath his shirt, there, too.

"You have to get up, Loke, please," Lucy begged. "Please."

Loke groaned, exhausted and hurt, but still determined to obey Lucy's demands. He rolled on his side and summoned more magic that he directed not at Gray, but at the ice Lucy's feet were entrapped in. The resulting bang was resounding, the shockwave moving up Lucy's legs. Her boots were the only thing that kept her skin from being eviscerated; her muscles still tingled and felt numb. In the aftermath, fine ice particles lifted into the air, almost beautiful. _Focus._ She moved her numb feet out of their icy cocoon, formulating a plan as Loke got painstakingly to his feet, facing an agitated Gray once more.

"Stop it, Lucy," Gray rasped. "Don't make me finish this."

Lucy squeezed her keys in her hand, scared but determined. "I won't stop until you do."

"And I won't stop until END is dead."

She could cry. _Fight instead._ She gripped Taurus' gate key and Scorpio's and was stepping into the lion's star dress when a fire on the horizon caught her attention. Black tinged and as red as blood. Her heart didn't beat harder; it stopped. In front of her, Loke's form wavered without his presence in Earthland being constantly bolstered by her magic after all the damage he'd taken.

Lucy couldn't focus on that. "…What?"

Gray followed her gaze. His devil slayer's mark escaped Eileen's cage a little more, turning his skin pure black wherever it touched. He'd never felt END more clearly. His lungs rejected breath, his skin broke out in goose bumps.

"Lucy!"

Lucy couldn't take her eyes off the fire to find Happy barreling in like a bat out of hell. He didn't bother landing, grabbing her up without permission. She felt him shaking as he lifted her into the air, muscles straining. For once, he didn't make a wise crack or complain about her weight.

"Lucy!" Gray's scream chased her from the ground. Lucy didn't look down at him, either. Loke's gate snapped closed. Gray's magic reached for her, pillar after pillar of rotting ice looking to tear her from the sky.

Happy dodged the attacks not without difficulty and huffed out a quick, inadequate explanation that only Lucy could hear. "Natsu is going after Zeref. He's going to kill him and when he does that, he'll die, too, because—"

 _Because he's END,_ Lucy filled in the blanks.

"They're connected."

On the ground, Gray started his chase once more. This time, he had fury and urgency on his side. When he asked his magic to carry him faster, slicking the ground in ice, it obeyed.


	31. Chapter 31

The air burned going in. Gajeel breathed shallowly while Levy turned her face into her white sleeve and coughed roughly. When she came away, her coat was covered in blood so bright, it was startling. Gajeel grabbed her arm and tugged it out for closer examination, though he hardly felt safe taking his eyes off their approaching opponent. "What's happening?"

"I think—it's magic barrier particles," Levy wheezed.

"Coming from him," Carla added, nodding to the approaching demon. The creature lifted hands covered in paper-thin skin so pale it looked dead, and threw back his obscuring hood. What lay beneath wasn't a man and it wasn't really a demon, at least, not one like Gajeel had seen before. Its skin was patchy, an off-grey colour that reminded him of rotting cream. Beneath the holey layer, bits of bone and teeth could be seen. The coup de grâce to the macabre display was the eyes that were blanched so white, he must have been blind.

His mouth opened and words came out, spoken with a tongue so dry, the desert would be jealous. "His Majesty calls you Gajeel Redfox." His voice belonged to the dead, hundreds of dry bones rubbing, last breaths _shushing,_ all merged into one.

Gajeel stood straighter and stepped forward; if Levy realized he was trying to block her from view, she didn't do much to correct that state of being. "You got the right guy. You are?"

"I am known to the Spriggan 12 as Bloodman. You may call me Reaper."

Gajeel scoffed. "Lame name, bub. Sorry about your luck."

"Then why are you _shivering_?"

Gajeel morphed both of his hands into blades and stepped a little bit closer. The demon watched his every movement, making the dragon slayer think that maybe he wasn't as blind as he thought. "That's excitement, not fear." It was fear.

The demon smiled grotesquely, seeing through him. "His Majesty said you would stand in the way of Master END's resurrection if you could. I have permission to drag you into the halls of Perdition."

"END?" Levy asked, ever curious. "You expect to find him here?"

Bloodman deigned to entertain her. "Yes. He's forgotten who he is. His return to his brother's side is the only thing his Majesty thinks of, and thus, it is the only thing we Etherious crave."

"His Majesty?" Levy pumped for information. Gajeel entertained attacking while the demon was distracted. He moved; the Reaper followed that movement.

"Emperor Spriggan. Zeref Dragneel."

Gajeel stopped. "Dragneel? As in Salamander?"

The demon's face contorted in rage. He lifted his hand and Gajeel was hit with a wall of barrier particles that tried to dig his lungs apart. He fell to the ground, unable to stand any longer, and held his breath until the power faded. In its wake, Bloodman said, " _Respect_ must be paid to Master END. _Salamander_ is not his name. He is the best of us, the one that will deliver us from this world into the next. Filth like you should never address him, but if you must, let it be by _Master_."

Gajeel picked himself up and playacted, putting on an unconcerned face. "You're out of your fucking mind. This is as far into Magnolia as you get." He took in as much air as he dared. Iron lungs or not, it didn't feel great. He shot a look Levy's way. She and Carla had their arms over their noses but they still looked pale. _Make this quick._

"Gajeel," Levy's voice was muffled. "Magic barrier particles are poisoning the air. We have to retreat."

"You go, I'll stay and take care of this guy."

"Gajeel, please—"

"Get out of here," he barked so loudly, both she and Carla jumped. Carla took a retreating step. Levy was more determined than that, though, not so easily bullied, not anymore.

"I won't leave you here to die!"

The Reaper bowed his decaying head. "The girl is right. You'll be dead within moments. It will be my pleasure to guide you to Death's halls."

Gajeel had a short and vivid fantasy of what that would be like. Then he rejected the idea and squared his shoulders. "My lungs are iron."

"Even iron rots."

The demon came.

He was a force to be reckoned with.

* * *

Erza had been in a lot of battles and was well familiar with the ebb and flow of a fight, meaning that currently, she knew her side of things was ebbing. Eileen never touched her swords to deflect a blow, but that didn't mean that she didn't get in plenty of her own. Where she kept her hands to herself, the earth and the plants and the air and the water rushed to do her bidding. Nothing made itself unavailable to her. She was the embodiment of power, a true queen of dragons, wrathful and powerful and almost fearless.

The hot trickle of blood sneaking down Erza's chin was distracting. She swiped at it, never taking her eye off Eileen. It wasn't where she needed to be looking, though, it was at her back, where the earth formed itself into a stubby stone golem in the shape of a dragon, complete with gnashing granite teeth, stone eyes, stone scales, and claws so long, Achnologia would be put to shame. Erza only knew it was there because the ground rumbled beneath its body. She whipped around, narrowly avoiding being cleaved in two. In retaliation, she swung with her swords before she realized that it was a stone puppet she attacked. Orion's right sword went wild while the left lost a chip out of its steel. Erza felt the weapon's imbued magic surge, trying to escape through the damage. She prayed that it would stay where it was.

The golem had no vocal chords with which to emit its cry, yet Erza knew it was in pain as the thing's structure rotted before her eyes, then turned to dust like it was a creature made of flesh and blood, desiccated by the centuries.

The last piece hadn't fallen to the ground before she turned back to look at a stupefied Eileen. "Is that what I can hope will happen to you?" In that moment, seeing the uncertainty on Eileen's face, Erza felt the battle's tide change. Maybe it was perceived, but it was enough to give her hope again. She attacked viciously without waiting for an answer and was rewarded as her sword bit into Eileen's ribs.

Eileen flinched and danced away. Distracted looking at the blackening skin on Eileen's midsection, Erza didn't see the root that shot from the ground. Quicker than Erza could blink, it bent her sword so badly, it twisted her still broken fingers and fractured the steel to the point where it became useless. One of Orion's legendary swords, wrecked.

Cussing, she dropped the blade to the ground. It, too, took to dust much in the same way the golem did.

"What will you do now, Erza?" Eileen clutched her ribs as she spoke. Her voice was breathy, nearly taken away by the growing wind.

"One blade is more than enough to end your miserable existence." She hoped.

Eileen smiled. "I've often wondered if what waits beyond would be as unsatisfactory as life has been. Walking Death's halls, will I be able to taste, to feel?"

Erza squeezed her sweaty pommel. The metal crossguard dug into her hand. "You almost sound human when you talk like that."

Eileen's smile was genuine and cold. "No, Erza, though it is very human of you to think that. I've just had a very, very long time to muse. One runs out of things to think about."

Erza was inclined to believe her, Eileen was a monster through and through.

The woman's body started changing shape. Wings burst from her back, scaly feet with enormous claws exploded from her boots. "This is the end for you, Erza. I wish I could sing a hymn for your death, but I find myself beyond apathetic." Those were the last words she spoke before her mouth filled with razor teeth and her nose elongated into a snout. Her scales were crimson stained black, her eyes were cold and unfeeling.

Erza felt her lungs seize before fear made way for determination. "I have faced worse demons than you." She lived with them every night. This would be another to go beneath her pillow until she found a way to make peace with it, too.

Eileen, more dragon than woman now, opened her mouth and roared so loudly, Erza went temporarily deaf. She didn't allow herself the luxury of clapping her hands over her ears; she'd been distracted more than enough during this fight. She opened her mouth and let out a war cry of her own and then she was running, afraid if she didn't _move_ , she never would.

Erza didn't get very far. A dark portal opened before her and a grey man with skin cracked with age stepped free. "Eileen, return to your human form at once."

The dragon roared and swiped at Erza, making her intentions blatant. Erza lifted Orion's remaining sword and caught the attack, for all the good it did her. Out matched, she rolled across the ground like a doll. She came to rest, every bone in her body aching.

" _Enough_." The man's voice boomed with power.

Erza lifted her head just enough to watch Eileen go from dragon to woman. The retraction of the spell was not without cost, Eileen stumbled and fell, disoriented. it took seconds for her to lift her gaze and find the newcomer through her haze of scarlet hair. When she spoke, her voice warbled. "What is the meaning of this, August?"

"His Majesty demands that we call off our attack," August explained. "Rise and retreat." He spoke with an authority that was difficult to ignore. Even Erza found herself hanging off his words; this man was powerful.

"I have business here," Eileen protested.

"No business that can't wait. Everything is going according to plan, he will be leaving us shortly. His Majesty is expecting us to return."

Eileen stood and dusted herself off. She didn't look as though she were ready to call it quits. Her next words affirmed it. "I will return when I am finished."

Groaning, Erza pushed herself up from the ground. The world spun. Being vertical was unkind to her body.

"We swore an oath as we entered the Spriggan 12."

"And without his Majesty around to uphold it, we are _no longer bound_ ," Eileen said fiercely.

" _Honour_ ," August spat. "Honour binds us. Stand down and return to Alvarez."

Eileen made to ignore him, stepping toward a still-reeling Erza. August grabbed her by her full braid and yanked her around so they were nose-to-nose. The look on Eileen's face was utter outrage; she wasn't used to such treatment. She opened her mouth to object. August glared; magic bloomed. Eileen's lips smacked back together and skin grew over them. Panic took the place of rage.

"An enchantress is useless without her voice. Do not make me take that away," August threatened. "His Majesty says our presence here is no longer needed, so we will retreat and carry out our oath."

He didn't wait for a reply. Heavy magic filled the air. Erza blinked and they were gone.

* * *

Cheria felt more powerful than she ever had before. And crueler. _But not without cause,_ she told herself. At the first sign of waning resolve, all she had to do was think of the blood blooming beneath Wendy's head, staining the gravel below, and she knew that not only _could_ she kill a woman wearing a god's skin, she would _be glad_.

The takeover mage didn't stand much of a chance. Every attack thrown Cheria's way, Cheria dodged in a very specific manner, bringing herself closer and closer to her target until she was right on top of her. Then she summoned her most powerful, most lethal spell. Heavenly Gathering of Clouds didn't sound like much, but when its power was pounding through Cheria's veins, she thought, _I never need to use magic again, if I can remember how this feels. It will be enough._

She held that thought to her heart as she released her final spell ever and watched the Chronos pretender fall to the earth. She followed her down so she could see the soul slip away and _hear_ the last breath of life leave her body. When Chronos was just a girl once more, Cheria felt every scrap of magic abandon her.

In its wake, she didn't know who she was.

A girl that folded into Wendy's arms, maybe. A girl that cried, though she told herself she wouldn't.

* * *

Taking in barrier particles made mince out of his lungs. Gajeel forced his body to do it anyway, knowing that the alternative was worse. He was losing, badly at that. The pure energy the particles could give him would more than make up for the gap in power levels, he hoped. It was a careless, reckless move—the actions of a desperate man.

He was hit solidly by a curse resembling Mard Geer's. The thorn pierced his leg. It went numb. _Not good, not good,_ he thought. There wasn't much time to assess the damage or lament the slip in his guard because on the sidelines, not near far enough away for Gajeel's liking, Levy screamed his name.

She sent a spell his way to help—fire. It was immediately put out by a wave of drowning water—a curse both he and Levy were well familiar with. Levy's voice was lost in the overbearing wave. She almost was, too, except Carla traded her hands for wings and lifted the girl into the air, out of harms way.

Gajeel almost relaxed. Then the Reaper used an explosion to tear them from the sky. Spiraling like two downed birds, Carla hit the ground first, then Levy. The smell of blood was in the air, and charred skin. Gajeel's throat got small. He didn't want to look; there was no way to expunge the raw red meat Levy's arm had become from his mind. That was a scar she'd carry with her for her whole life.

Conviction renewed, Gajeel resumed his intake of magic barrier particles, thinking without humor, _hell or high water, I'm going to win._

"Does that make you _angry_ , dragon slayer?" The Reaper laughed. "And now you're consuming mine particles? To take righteous action? To kill me for harming the girl? You'll die. You'll die." He got close enough that Gajeel could smell his rotting breath. " _You'll die_."

Skin felt like it was ripping. Ears felt like they were bleeding. Eyes, blind. One by one, all of Gajeel's senses burned up to make room for the power the barrier particles loaned him. The pain was real. _That's your body dying._ The rage was real. _That's Levy's justice._ And the fear, because _whothefuck_ wanted to die?

"Gajeel!"

Levy's voice called him out of a white noise abyss. He blinked and blinked until he saw not just black, but the demon who's heart he was going to pulverize. When he moved, it was with a coordination that was not entirely his own. He hit Bloodman squarely in the chest and felt ribs crack and buckle. The demon stumbled back. When he had stabilized, he drew breath—who knew if he actually gained sustenance from the air—and _cackled._

Gajeel came after him again, uninterested in knowing what the hell was so funny. He hit him in the stomach; the demon buckled. He made swords out of his arms and cut through papery skin with an efficiency he hadn't before.

 _Rage. Rage. Rage._ All he felt was rage and righteousness. Screaming, he raised two swords and

And

And hit nothing but dust.

The Reaper was gone, burned from this earth by a force that Gajeel didn't understand.

* * *

Flying was never something Lucy was super comfortable with, it was more Natsu's shtick than hers, but she was starting to see the draw to it as Happy flew out of Gray's range, over retreating soldiers and difficult terrain, drawing them closer to the bell tower at a speed that was superior to anything she could match on her own.

Below her position, she knew Gray travelled faster than he should—than he ever _could_ —without the aid of magic. She didn't dare look down, her reasoning two-fold. She had a mild fear of heights, and she didn't want to see her friend-turned-enemy. He wasn't playing as he attacked Loke. Her strongest spirit would be recovering from that bout for days. Maybe weeks.

 _And your friendship? How will that fair_? And what about _their_ friendship? Gray was Loke's best friend, and likewise, if she had to guess.

 _Stop. Stop thinking about useless crap._

Besides, there was a more enigmatic problem that caught her attention. The fire that had been raging in her periphery was getting brighter, brighter, hotter and hotter as they drew closer. And then it was dying. Lucy's heart lodged in her throat, muffling Natsu's name when she tried to shout it.

There was no response., not that she truly expected there to be.

"Natsu!" Happy's voice joined hers.

A huge dust storm formed out of nowhere and hit Happy hard, tearing him from the sky. Free-falling like a shot duck, Lucy's fear of heights was redoubled. The ground came up especially fast. There wasn't much time to scream.

She hit a barrier that was cold and unforgiving and slid instead of free-fell. _Ice,_ logic supplied. Soon enough, her visual center aligned the events for her brain to catch up: Gray's magic carried she and Happy to the ground on a huge slide made of ice. The taste of blood was in her mouth; she'd bit her tongue when she hit the slide.

The end of the impromptu ride couldn't come soon enough. When solid ground was beneath her, Lucy didn't wait for Happy, she was on her feet, closer to a burning Natsu than ever. In the fire at the top of the hill, she could see his shape. He gripped someone tightly to his body. _Zeref_ , she thought. _He has Zeref._ And they were burning.

The bell screamed as the tower cracked in the heat and fell; the sound filled the streets, vying for loudness only with Lucy's voice. Natsu's name tore out of her chest again and again, automatically, hanging in the air, waiting for a response. On the hill, in amongst the flame, she _felt_ him meet her eyes.

She tripped on a folded piece of ice and came up hard, knees cracking against the ground. Happy zoomed by her, then fell, too, a solid block of ice. Lucy scrambled upright again and was on the move, reaching for her keys, feeling urgent and frantic and lost. She called for Loke, always, but dropped his key as arms, as cold as she remembered, locked around her middle and dragged her to the ground. Lucy fought every step of the way, screaming and cussing, writhing.

"Stop, stop fighting, Lucy!" Gray bellowed in her ear.

"No. Let me go! I have to get to him." It was so important. She elbowed Gray in the ribs. His hold slipped. She elbowed him in the face and he released her. Lucy was up and running again. Her jaunt was cut short, ice again encasing her legs, stopping her so quickly, she fell to her knees. The skin on her shins screamed, _raw_. Any attempt to tear her legs out of the trap was useless.

 _You have to do something._ "Scorpio!" Lucy yelled, summoning the spirit without his key in hand. He came into the world in a whirl of sand and irritation. He acted without Lucy's guidance, summoning a powerful sandstorm. It was on a direct collision course with its target when it went awry, pushed aside by a familiar looking light. Lucy felt the gross tug on her magic and had her suspicions confirmed as Loke stepped out of a diminishing gate.

The spirit looked worse for wear, skin necrotized in many places, black and burnt red and dead. "Go, Scorpio."

Lucy's gate closed without her say-so. "Loke—"

He didn't look at her. "Keep her here, Gray, I'll go."

"Loke!"

He ignored her and started away without waiting for Gray's agreement.

Lucy struggled in Gray's magic. "Loke! Get me out of here and take me with you!"

He kept walking.

"Loke! You're my spirit, I command you to—"

A cold hand clamped around her mouth, severing her words. Lucy bit the palm as hard as she could, tasting blood. Gray hissed and released her. Free, she yelled, "Loke! Loke, stop! Take me with you!"

Loke said, "It's too dangerous up there. Stay here where it's safe."

Lucy let out a frustrated cry and pressed against Gray's hold. If it wasn't his ice, it was his arms. He was ironclad at her back; she wasn't getting anywhere. "Let go of me!"

"No, stop fighting." Gray's voice was loud in her ear.

Giving up on Gray, Lucy called for her spirit again. "Loke!" Her voice cracked. "Come back and take me with you!" _You'd be wasting time, Natsu needs someone_ now _._ She _knew_ that. She couldn't shake the feeling that it should be her. "Loke! I order you to _take me with you!_ " Lucy put magic into that command. She watched Loke falter twenty feet ahead. He stopped.

Elation took her.

And then mystification as he kept on going, disobeying a direct order. It cost him; she saw the way he struggled, heard the way he panted even from so far away. The fire on the hill burned colder. _It's going out._

She let the spell go, allowing Loke to walk freely. By the time he reached the top of the hill, the fire was gone.

* * *

More than half-numb, Erza stumbled back toward the school. It was so much further away now, and mostly a grey, smoking pile of crumbled brick. Her heart hammered with each step. She kept wondering what she'd see when she entered the halls. Gray and Lucy dead, because that man had carried out Eileen's ( _your mother's_ ) will? The man dead instead, because Fairy Tail bowed to no one, even in the face of great adversary?

She used her sword to help her walk and knew she was going to need a lot more help than that when a battered Gajeel came over the horizon, strung between a crying Levy and a sweaty Carla. She hobbled in their direction, not in much condition to help but feeling obligated. She got within five hundred meters. By then, Midnight and Sorano staggered out of the ruined building. Sorano came to her, Midnight went to Gajeel.

"Jellal?" Erza asked when the woman's arm was beneath hers, helping her stand.

"I wouldn't be out here on my own if he wasn't up and barking orders," Sorano muttered.

Erza smiled despite herself. "Everyone else?"

"There's a force to the east. I don't know their condition. They're slowly making their way back, though," Sorano reported. "They're moving with the help of the king's guard."

Erza's stomach flopped. "You should get Crime Sorciere together and leave."

"That's what I said," Sorano agreed. "Our fearless leader has different ideas."

Jellal was mad. "Between the King's Guard and the Magic Council—"

"I know," Sorano agreed. "Try telling Jellal that, though."

Erza knew him well enough to know he'd never balk, not when he felt like something needed to be done.


	32. Chapter 32

"You're not well enough, Gajeel," Levy complained, voice echoing off the brand new Fairy Tail training hall walls. Gajeel ignored her and discarded the metal cane he'd made. It'd helped him walk for three weeks, taking the pressure off his ruined nerve endings (a prognosis handed down first by Wendy, then Porlyusica when he didn't accept that) but not much else. The injury was still as painful as all hell and likely would be for the rest of his life. He could deal with pain. What he couldn't deal with was the way everyone looked at him.

Pity. Everyone was brimming with it, especially if they saw him twitch or hiss or limp especially bad.

They wanted to do stuff for him and help him around everywhere.

 _Not_ _fucking_ _happening_ , Gajeel thought stubbornly. He couldn't take having a flock of hens following his every move, fawning and crying because things that were easy, walking, running, climbing stairs, working out, weren't anymore.

Just because they weren't easy didn't mean they were impossible. He tried telling Levy that. She was still there, gasping and flinching when his leg twisted wrong. He couldn't get rid of her. She insisted upon being there as he tried to get back into things. This was the third day in the training hall with Pantherlily; Levy had found a place to set up residence and chewed her hair, a nervous twitch. She wasn't going to have any left if she kept at it.

Gajeel turned his focus from her and discarded his cane. It _tinged_ metalically across the floor and came to a rest by Levy's feet. He didn't see what happened to it after that, he was busy forcing his body into an excruciating crouch and looking at a calculating Pantherlily. Unlike Levy, the cat didn't coddle him. He attacked the same way he always did, with a ferociousness that said, ' _I'm Gajeel Redfox's Exceed, and anyone that fucks with me has fucked with the wrong fucking cowboy.'_ His lack of sympathy was absolutely _refreshing_. About as refreshing as going back to the shitty fucking motel on the outskirts of town and stripping down with Levy's help. As refreshing as her climbing into the tub with him and massaging the sore muscle on his thigh, and then the sore muscle more northward. Each situation had its merit.

It took an embarrassing thirty seconds for Pantherlily to land a solid tide-changing shot—not that the flow of the battle had ever really been in Gajeel's favour. It was difficult relearning to fight. He _knew_ it was going to be. That knowledge, garnered with the ceiling in his sights and the floor beneath his back, wasn't easy to swallow.

Levy gasped— _again_. Pantherlily didn't apologize, only helped Gajeel up. Gajeel accepted his defeat like a big boy, taking it on the chin with grim determination, thinking next time, his bum leg wouldn't give out on him. Next time, he'd land a hit without thinking about how much agony he was in. Eventually, he might even kick the cane and be almost as good as he used to be.

 _Keep working._

That was impossible when Carla came in, human form donned, a worried expression on her face.

"News just arrived from the Magic Council. Draculos Hyberion wishes to speak with you. The lacrima's in the Master's office."

The unchosen Master, that was.

Levy came to Gajeel and wrapped the arm not covered in permanent scars around his body, helping him through the guild. Gajeel let it happen because she felt good beside him.

* * *

On a hard mattress in a motel room that was mostly cobwebs and dust, Erza lay on her side, nose-to-nose with Jellal. She breathed deeply, relaxed with his fingers inching through her hair methodically.

"Do you think she'll return?" Jellal's voice crackled after long moments of disuse.

Erza focused on his eyes and the dusting of freckles that kissed his nose. In contrast to his pale face, his tattoo looked dark, freshly inked by Macbeth's hand. The man's artistry was actually something to behold, his lines steady and true.

"Erza?"

"Mm?" she asked, distracted.

"Eileen. Do you think she'll return?"

 _Oh._ "I don't think I've seen the last of her." At least, Erza hoped not. "She has a lot to answer for."

"The world is not an unjust place. One way or another, she'll get what's coming to her."

"I want my blades to deliver her punishment," Erza said with a surprising amount of vehemence. There was something to be said about being left to rot in a back alley. She didn't think she'd feel much, but the anger was palpable. It was the hubris that got her, the lack of compassion. How could a person like Eileen exist? _How can she be your flesh and blood?_

An abrupt knock tugged Erza from her reverie. She jolted into a sitting position, sheets falling down around her naked body. Her heart beat hard, already knowing what her mind did +

"Who is it?"

"Gajeel," the dragon slayer responded beyond the barrier.

Erza looked to Jellal and was just about to whisper something like, _out the window,_ when Gajeel's voice came again. "I know he's in there, Erza, stop fucking around."

"Come in," Jellal answered for her.

Erza glared at him.

"This isn't something that's easily escaped," Jellal responded to her unvoiced accusation. It was amazing they had as much time as they did. Three weeks was a gift, no matter _who_ you talked to.

The door opened and a hobbling Gajeel entered seconds after Erza used her magic to change into something less revealing: a plain blue dress that was really too cold for the crappy room they slept in—the heaters were broken and had been for _days,_ but did the owners do a thing about it?

"Erza." Gajeel pretended that seeing her and Jellal in bed together wasn't awkward. "Jellal."

"What do you want?" Relations had been strained between them. Erza wasn't feeling generous enough to make them any better.

Gajeel said, "I have instructions from the council."

Erza was counting down to this day and it seemed it had finally arrived. "They can't arrest him." She would fight and fight, become an outlaw to stand up for what she thought was right.

Gajeel closed the door and said a word of power Erza didn't know. Magic filled the room, and then a sense of dampening. "What was that?"

"A spell to keep prying ears out," Gajeel replied. He focused solely on Jellal. "You're wanted by the Magic Council for your crimes against humanity."

Jellal hung his head, accepting his fate in a way Erza wished he _wouldn't_. "I've had many years of freedom."

"And you'll get a lot of years of punishment for them, too."

"I'm ready to accept that fate."

Maybe he was, but Erza wasn't. "They can't lock you up, Jellal. You're doing good stuff—"

"They don't intend on putting him or his ragtag guild in a jail cell," Gajeel cut in.

Erza took a moment to process. "What?"

"They want you as an agent. You'll work for the council, doing council sanctioned jobs. It'll be a lot like what you're doing now. Dangerous shit, you know? The stuff they don't want to send their people on."

"Suicide missions," Erza spat, feeling betrayed in a way that was much larger than anything she'd ever experienced before. This was her _council._ Men and women that were supposed to stand up for what was _right_ , not send people to their deaths under the banner of 'Good Cause'.

"You can call them that, I guess," Gajeel said. "If you don't accept, it'll be a lifetime sentence, same as before. If you do, you'll report to the Council for assignment."

"I will accept," Jellal said without hesitation.

"Jellal," Erza hissed.

He wouldn't look at her.

Gajeel continued, "Good. They want you to keep on keeping on. No one knows about you, you don't talk to regular citizens, you don't affiliate with the Council, you're a ghost."

"Because they're _ashamed_ ," Erza raged.

Gajeel addressed Jellal only. "Any fuckups and you'll be back to where you started. And that goes for _any_ of your guild. One person stepping out, that's all it takes to make the whole deal go south."

Jellal nodded. "I understand."

"Gajeel," Erza said. "You can't be serious."

"This was the best I could do, Erza. The other options are death or chains." Gajeel pulled a set of cuffs from his waistband.

Erza wanted to scream. Then a sense of placation overcame her. Jellal was resourceful and smart; he wouldn't be bested by men and women that sat in stiff council chairs handing out missions no one else was brave enough to accept.

Gajeel said, "If we're good, your first mission's waiting at headquarters in Era. Take your guild and hit the road as soon as possible."

"We'll be gone before noon," Jellal said.

"Good. I'll let Draculos know you're on your way."

* * *

Wind played through Wendy's hair, pushing it onto Cheria's shoulder as they lay on the rooftop of the motel, Obsidian Blossom, a piece of garbage with a fancy name because the owner had an affinity for black roses.

Cheria breathed deeply and reached for the element, an automatic response. Wendy felt the absence of the girl's magic so acutely, it made her want to cry.

Cheria was tuned into her emotions. "Don't be sad. You have a lot to be happy for. Tomorrow, the new guild hall is opening and a new master is going to be named. And—Magnolia is being rebuilt. I saw the King's personal architect in town today. He was designing a new library."

"Do you miss it?" Wendy asked, not interested in the 'false-talk'.

Cheria sighed and leaned over Wendy's body. "Magic?"

"Yeah."

"It was a part of me. I'll feel it's absence forever," Cheria answered honestly. "But with every new day, I realize that it's not the most important part of me. It's not what defines me."

Wendy touched the girl's cheek, a gesture that came more easily lately. Cheria closed the distance between them, locking their mouths in a kiss that left Wendy lightheaded.

* * *

Sitting on a narrow bed made with an off-yellow comforter, Laxus was more than a third of the way through a mickey of whisky when his door opened without ceremony and Mirajane came through. Hair loose around her shoulders, red, red lipstick on her mouth, she wore a tight fitting black dress. When she turned to close the door, Laxus realized that it was sheer in the right light. It was only her silver hair falling over her shoulders that prevented him from seeing everything.

"Mira," he slurred, not too sure how he felt about the intrusion.

She shook her head exasperatedly and approached. "Fuck sakes. Are you drunk again, Laxus?"

That made up his mind rather quickly: she was feeling hostile, thus, so was he. "Are you not? I saw you and Cana sitting at the bar."

Mira couldn't deny him; she had to change Elfman's bandage again this afternoon and thought maybe being a little tipsy would help numb her; the first time she saw the mess her brother's chest was, she'd thrown up. The second time wasn't much better. The third time, she was too buzzed to get caught on the details—puckered wet skin sewn together, bits of red seen through the gash. A few pieces of thread were all that prevented his insides being on the out. To expel the image, Mira said, "I'm not the one reading Master's will tomorrow—you shouldn't be hungover."

"Want to be? Reading, that is," Laxus asked glibly and grabbed a sheet of paper off the small table that served for a desk in his puny motel room.

"No." Mira pushed the paper away. "That's _your_ job."

"Says who?" He looked up at her suspiciously. "Know something I don't?"

Her brow went up. "Like?"

"Like what that will says." He hadn't been brave enough to read it yet.

She snorted. "Don't worry, under the 'Master' section, it sure as hell doesn't say _your_ name."

Instead of being insulted, Laxus relaxed. "Good." He drank more. Mira tried to take the bottle; he pushed her away.

Frustrated, she asked, "Is this what you do now? Get drunk, get melancholy, be generally miserable."

"Don't know if you noticed, but it's a pretty fucking miserable time," Laxus said sharply.

"Because you're mourning?"

"I can handle death."

Mira puffed air from her nose. "Then it's because you didn't get your revenge?"

Laxus squeezed the neck of the bottle. "Yeah, Mira, something like that." This time when he tried to drink, she made good on snatching the bottle away. Laxus swiped for it and missed. "Give it back."

"No. You need to read your grandfather's will without throwing up in the daisy pot."

"That's Cana's move."

"Back when she was thirteen, maybe," Mira said. "But even she knows when to call it quits."

"You telling me she's sober right now?"

"Dead straight." Which was almost like her being drunk. Mira didn't think Cana knew how to operate without enough beer in her blood to prevent her freezing in sub-zero temperatures.

Laxus scrubbed his face and sighed. Mira put the whisky bottle down. "She got what she deserved. Dimaria. It wasn't you that got revenge, but…"

"It should have been," Laxus said.

Mira touched his scruffy cheek, fingering the deep scar on his jawline. He hadn't shaved in days and days; the hair there wouldn't grow properly anymore. "It'll help if you think about something else."

He was building a volley of hurtful things to say. Mira laid their mouths together, burning up his attempts so fast, Laxus reeled.

Only when she moved away did he spit, "What are you doing?"

"Maybe thinking about other things."

He searched her blue eyes. "Is this just a thing now? You come in to my room, scold me for being drunk then take off your clothes?"

She grabbed the hem of her dress and pulled it over her head. She had on a black lacy bra and a matching set of underwear. "There was a time when you wouldn't ask questions."

She was right. She took off the rest of her clothes. Then his. He resigned himself to doing and not thinking.

* * *

"Gray-sama."

Coming out of the shower, Gray found her in the grey light. She lay on the single mattress, one hand tossed over her head, the other splayed out on her belly, tree leaf green nails bright against the black negligee she wore. Beneath the sheer surface, Gray saw the band of black panties, stark when compared to her skin. His pants felt tighter. He delayed the moment he went to her, trying to see if he _could_.

"Gray-sama," Juvia whispered his name again and held out her hand. She had a gravity he couldn't escape as much as he tried. Her fingertips were playing over his skin before he realized he'd moved. So close, shadow lifted and he could clearly see her hair fanning out over the pillow, dark blue like storm clouds, her eyes blue quartz. He leaned over her in an effort to bring their bodies closer together. She was the warmest thing he could think of, the sweetest smelling, the most forgiving, bottomless, like the ocean. Her fingers traced over his cheekbones and slid into his hair.

"You're still sick."

The statement was offered in a voice that brimmed with compacted worry.

"I'm alright."

They both knew it was a lie. His skin felt as itchy as ever, the need for demon souls burning him up. When that didn't take him, it was the guilt. Lucy was a wicked living ghost, screaming in his head day in and day out. _'Let me go.'_ The only upside Gray could see was that he and Juvia _mostly_ weren't connected any longer, so she didn't have to drown in it, too. There was the odd time, though, where the connection Meredy severed tried to reconnect and he could feel everything as vividly as he had weeks before. He didn't ask Juvia what she felt from him in those times, afraid of what she'd say. Instead he begged Meredy to find something to fix their predicament more permanently. She said it couldn't be done; they'd just have to deal with feeling each other on the periphery every now and again.

Juvia wriggled beneath him, unintentionally brushing over his erection. He let his eyes close, focused on her breathing, on her fingers rolling down his neck on her breasts pressing into his chest, on—

"I don't think Eileen was lying when she said the magic will consume—"

He placed his finger over her mouth, quieting her. She silenced. He kissed her neck in hopes of keeping it that way—thinking about impending doom could wait another day.

Juvia would only be distracted for a moment. "What if you just lose your mind, Gray-sama?" She sounded close to tears. It was a state that she was in more often than not lately. Sometimes she cried about his magic, sometimes she cried about Akio. That was mostly when she slept, though. Awake, she did everything she could to keep the memory of the demon's probing fingers at bay.

It wasn't healthy.

Nothing they did was.

"I'll keep hunting demons." Hunting meant satiation, which meant the madness felt further away.

It was a temporary fix at best. It always came back, worse than before.

"Gray-sama, what about—"

 _What about when it stops working?_ H _e_ didn't have a good answer. He kissed the peak of her breast through the sheer lingerie, cutting into her words and touched her in all the ways he knew to make her mindless. Eventually, she gave in. Her kisses turned less reluctant and more forceful, her touches were all insistent.

Gray wasn't a fool; when they were done, she'd come back double-fold with harder questions that he didn't know the answer to. He treaded to keep his head above water.

* * *

The grass beneath Lucy's head was fragrant and cool with autumn's arrival kiss. She brushed her fingers over the too-long blades. "Do you think Magnolia will ever be the same?"

"No." His answer was short and poignant.

Lucy rolled her head on her shoulders and looked into his onyx eyes. "Me, neither. I thought you'd be more optimistic, though."

"You're the optimist," Natsu told her.

"You're always the one with the smile."

"Because I was always smiling at you."

"I love this."

He didn't answer.

Lucy rolled on her side, taking her eyes away from the midnight sky so she could look at him properly. He wasn't smiling now. "What is it?"

"You know."

It had been the same thing every night for weeks. Lucy plucked the grass instead of skimming over it. "I was really scared."

"Me, too." His hand found hers and stopped her movements. "You don't have to be now. You're safe."

"Natsu—"

He leaned in and brushed his lips over hers, silencing her words for a solid five seconds. In that time, Lucy melted into him and grabbed him by the shirt, determined to hold him in place. He moved away, he always did.

"Natsu—"

He brushed her bangs back from her forehead. "Please, Lucy."

"No." She thought she'd do anything to keep him from saying his next words. She couldn't stop him.

"You've been here for a long time."

"I want to stay here. I want to stay here forever." She'd already _told_ him that.

His fingers moved through her hair. "You can't."

"Says who?"

He didn't give her a name, only said, "You know it's time to wake up."

"I don't want to."

"Lucy—"

"Stop. Stop pushing me away."

"Please, wake up."

Tears pressed into her eyes. "I don't _want_ to. I want to stay here with you."

She could say that all she liked; he was slipping away, taken again by Sandman. Lucy blinked, this time not looking at the starry sky or Natsu's familiar face, but plain rafters, the wood of which was stained black by smoke. The body behind her felt her stirring and tightened its hold around her middle, drawing her in. He was warm and familiar; he wasn't the one she wanted, though.

Forlorn, Lucy wriggled out of Loke's comforting grip and stood. The bed was noisy to the very last. The spirit didn't budge; Lucy imagined it was to give her some privacy, not actually because he was asleep. She crossed the tiny room, feet sliding over the cold wooden floor, and slipped into the equally small bathroom. She didn't bother turning on the light, not even after the door was closed. She didn't care to see her wan expression peering out from the mirror marred with permanent blue, red and black marker.

She hiked up Natsu's shirt and sat to pee. Even after she'd finished, she stayed that way, staring blankly at the grey, scratched drywall. Her eyes were dry now; she'd cried all of her tears over a pile of ash. The wind had taken that away before she could do anything rash.

Tapping on the door reminded her that she wasn't alone. Lucy wiped and stood and flushed. Too fast. Her head spun; nausea overcame her, sudden and violent. She had enough time to turn and lean over the toilet before she emptied her stomach of the water she'd drunk before bed.

The door opened and Loke came in without waiting for permission. He pulled back her hair, laid a damp cloth on the back of her neck and cooed soothingly until she'd finished. Then he guided her back against the soggy drywall and held her while she shivered.

Twenty silent minutes passed. "That's the fifth time in two days, Lucy," Loke said eventually.

"I'm fine, just sick."

"You're not _just sick_ and you know it."

"Be quiet, Loke."

"You should see Porlyusica."

Lucy buried her face into Loke's shoulder and didn't answer.

* * *

Early the next morning, back in her bed, Lucy was awoken by a weight landing on her mattress. Her eyes came open eagerly, hoping, as she did every day, that she'd see his face. It was Porlyusica. Loke stood over her shoulder and studied the wall, a guilty but determined look on his face.

Lucy protested. Porlyusica did an examination anyway. Then she told Lucy what she already knew when she wasn't visited by her monthly cycle two weeks ago.

* * *

The motel room opened and a dark haired man peered inside, squinting in the low light. On the ground at the foot of the bed with her back against the wall, Lucy looked up from her entwined fingers and saw him clearly enough, her eyes long ago adjusted to the dark.

"Go away, Gray."

He came in instead and shut the door. Lucy looked for Loke; he was nowhere to be seen. Convenient.

Gray didn't say a word until he'd crossed the room and hunkered down by her side, shoulder abutting hers. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine," Lucy said abruptly. She wanted to pull away from him and yet, she liked the way he felt at her side, cold and different but somehow familiar, too.

"You're not fine, Lucy," he said gently.

Lucy's eyes suddenly burned. She blinked and blinked, trying to banish the feeling. "Why ask me how I feel if you're going to tell me?"

"Why lie about it?"

She picked viciously at her nails.

"Is it true? What Porlyusica said?"

"Is that what everyone's doing, talking about my business behind my back?"

"We're worried about you. Yes, or no?"

"Are you going to try to kill it if I say yes?" Lucy returned.

Gray dug his fingers through his hair then stopped, fingers laced together atop his head. He swore.

Lucy felt guilty for the jab. "I'm sorry."

He sniffed. Three heartbeats went by, then he spoke in a choked voice. "I don't know if I could have done it, you know? When I thought about it, I felt like I _had_ to, but I… it wasn't like killing Akio, it wasn't easy."

"Killing should never be easy," Lucy said. Then, because she thought he needed to hear it, not necessarily because she thought it was true, she said, "I didn't mean what I said. I know you wouldn't have done it."

"Now I know you're lying."

"It's true." Lucy was catapulted back into a night long, long ago. "You're a good person, Gray."

He turned that over in his head. Seconds of silence passed. "I came to console you, actually, not the other way around."

"I'm fine."

"Loke says you're sleeping too much."

Stepping into a beautiful dark paradise where her dragon slayer was very much alive. Where he kissed her and held her hand and joked occasionally. Where she didn't feel so fucking hollow. "I guess I'm tired."

"You're depressed."

"Are you a doctor?"

"I'm your friend," Gray said.

Lucy felt her emotions flip and couldn't help but try to hurt him. "Is that what we are? Because from where I stand, that's only when its convenient."

Gray looked wounded all over again. He didn't get up and leave like Lucy thought. Maybe that meant they _were_ friends. "There's a lot going on. You lost Natsu, you have another _person_ growing—"

"Stop, please." Hearing it all neatly laid out aloud was like being gutted. Lucy couldn't handle it.

Gray took her fingers in his icy hand and squeezed. They sat in strained silence until he finally broke again, seemingly unable to keep quiet. "It's a big job, being a mother."

Lucy had wrath on her tongue. It gave way for morose. Quietly, she said, "I'm not ready."

"And you're on your own." A look Lucy didn't much like came over him. "Lucy—"

"Shut up, Gray."

He deflated. "You don't even know what I was going to say."

"Something stupid. Something you don't mean." She took her hand away from his.

He couldn't even deny her.

"Thanks for coming to check up on me," Lucy said before she could apologize and listen to what he had to say and fall back into the same fucking hole she was in the year before.

Gray stood, taking his leave when he had it handed to him. He was at the door when he paused, hand on the knob. "The new guild hall is being opened today. Laxus is going to be reading Makarov's will around two. Apparently there was something in there about appointing a new master. You should come by."

Lucy didn't reply. Gray left.

* * *

There wasn't much to pack. Natsu's shirt. Her mother's earrings and necklace. Some clothes Virgo left behind. Natsu's scarf. It all easily fit into an ugly fuchsia duffle bag she found in the motel's lost and found.

Lucy was halfway out of the door when she felt Loke's gate open. A warm hand closed on hers, stopping her up short.

"Let go, Loke."

"No. Come back." He pulled her around more forcefully than she was expecting. Lucy stumbled through the door again. Loke closed it then grabbed the overstuffed duffle from her hands. Lucy's grip on it was so firm, Loke had to pry her fingers off one by one. Patience was a virtue, success was his. He set the bag on the ground when he could and gathered the girl in for a bone-crushing hug.

Lucy held on for three entire seconds. Then she fell into a fit of sobs.

"Shh." Loke stroked her hair. Lucy only cried harder. "It's okay."

"It's not."

"You're scared, I get it, things are changing. They're changing a lot, but—"

"I can't do it." She was barely audible between sobs.

"Yes, you can, Lucy." He started leading her back to the bed. All of the fight seemed to flee her system, so she went in truncated movements. He sat her down on the squealing mattress and knelt between her knees so he could look directly into her eyes. "You have to, because this isn't like before. You can't run from this."

"I'm not running." Her lie was watery at best.

"Come on, Lucy. Can't bullshit a bullshitter, remember?"

She swiped furiously at her tears. "I don't know how to do this."

"You'll do it the same as you've done everything you thought was _too hard_ , with the help of those that love you. I won't leave your side."

She cried more with his offer than without. Loke even knew _why_. She wanted only one person at her side.

"Lucy..." Loke swiped her cheek for her. "Lucy, please."

She was inconsolable.

Loke didn't know what to do. He too was drowning in her misery. He drew in a breath so deep, his lungs ached. _Tell her._

 _Don't._

 _Do_ , because she'd stop crying, maybe.

 _Don't,_ because if it weren't true, she'd be even more untethered.

He decided _do_ because she wrapped her arms around her middle, trying to hold herself in place when she was falling apart at the seams.

"I found something in the ash that day, when I went to the bell tower and you stayed behind."

Loke wondered if she even heard him. So he said something to get her attention. "What if I told you... there might be a way to bring him back?"

Lucy's sobs slowed. She sniffed. "What?"

Loke opened his gate and reached through. When he came back out, he held a thick tome. He held it even when Lucy tried to take it from him. She read the cover. "END. Is this Natsu's book?"

"Yeah. And..." He flipped to the front where in neat handwriting someone, likely Zeref, had penned _Hellfire._

Lucy touched the letters. "What is that?"

"A different kind of spirit." In the celestial realm, where _everything_ was bursting with magic, the book, for now, went undetected, but here, the magic that emanated from it was a beacon. He put it away before its call could alert others to its presence. It wasn't something he wanted very many people knowing about.

She studied his empty hands as if the book would appear again. "What are you saying?"

"That it's forbidden magic. But possible. Maybe. To—to have him come back."

"Like you."

"Sort of," Loke agreed because that was the easiest way to describe it.

"He'd have a key."

"If we forged one. If it worked, you could summon him, make a contract." Loke had to assume that's what Zeref had in mind when he left that book and the one-word note there for them to find. _Are you sure that's what happened?_ Who else would leave it, though? He could speculate as to why, too. The darkest mage to ever live felt guilt for tearing his brother from his life so he could end his.

"A contract like yours."

"Yes." Loke did what he could to ignore the feeling in his chest, the one that told him he was stretching celestial law once again. He didn't think exile would be so kind to him this time if the spirit king knew what he was saying.

Lucy expelled a quick breath. Her tears were gone, replaced by something uplifting: hope; seeing that, Loke thought he could weather exile for eternity. She wrapped her arms around his neck in the fiercest of hugs, then kissed him sloppily on the cheek, mouth wet, cheeks wet, nose wet. She was on her feet before Loke could return either gesture and racing across the room for her pack again and tearing back the door.

"Wait," Loke said. "What are you doing?"

Lucy paused. "I want to get started right away."

Loke tried to inject logic into the situation. "What about Fairy Tail?"

"When I have Natsu back, I'll return," Lucy said. "The guild will still be here."

"And Happy?"

She couldn't look at the cat without dissolving into depression. "When Natsu comes home, everything will be better again. For now, he's happier with Carla and Wendy."

"Lucy…" Loke considered stopping there, not wanting to tear the wind from her sails, but she needed to know. "Before this gets too far out of hand, you have to know, there will be sacrifices you have to make for this magic."

"What sacrifices?" She didn't look scared, she looked stubborn.

Loke faltered. "I don't know. We'll have to do some research, no one's tried to make a Hellfire spirit for centuries." Not that he could find, anyway. Cross hadn't been much help either. "But this kind of magic… it doesn't come for free."

"I'll pay anything."

He believed her. He only hoped that the cost wasn't too high. Rising, he went to her and folded her hand in his larger one. "Let's get started then." There wasn't time to wonder if they were making a mistake, the storm of fate was moving again.

* * *

A/N:

Thank you for reading. There is an ongoing sequel called Brimstone Garden, if you want to continue :)

Otherwise, my book has been printed and I have copies available. If you're interested, you can PM me for details or check my Facebook page, Kaitlin Corvus. If ebooks are more your style, it's up on Amazon, just type in The Abolition of Caden Hail.

Thanks so much for reading!


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